A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(THIRD COURSE)
A PROGRESSIVE
ENGLISH COURSE
(On the Reform Method)
BY
LANCELOT OLIPHANT, B.A.Hons.(Lond.)
ATTTIIOR OF
“the revised matriculation ENGLISH COURSE,” ETC.
Lecturer \n hngltsh at the Regent Street Polytechnic ^ Londmi
Examiner tn English to the Royal Society of Arts and to the
Civil Service CoMimtsstoners
SECOND EDITION
(Reprint)
THIRD COURSE
BOOK U
THE GREGG PUBLISHING CO. LTD.
GREGG HOUSE, RUSSELL SQ., LONDON, W.C.i
AND AT NEW YORK, TORONTO, BOMBAY, SYDNEY & SAN FRANCISCO
First Kdition .... 1919
St CONI) ICniTioN . . 192.3
Reprinted 1934
Reprinted *937
rUINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN BY
MORRISON AND 4 .IUB 1 .TD., LONDON AND EDTNMURGH
PREFACE
The aim and scope of this course were fully expLained
in the preface to the first volume. I may here,
liowever, repeal that the method adopted is the
Iloforni Method advocated by tht‘ Board of Education
in their Rt'port on the Teaching of English, and by
most modern educationists ; that the complete course
consists of four separate parts ; and that each part is
designed Lo cover about a year’s work, and each lesson
about a week’s work.
In this, the second volume, the extracts are longer
and more adv'^anced, and most of tJie exercises more
difficult. New subjects, such as Exposition, Verse
Composition, and the English Language, have been
introduced, and other subjects dealt with more fully,
especially Grammar, which, in view of the demands
which will now arise in connection with the learning
of a foreign tongue, it seemed advisable to treat at
some length. Those, however, who do not particularly
wish to concern themselves with formal Giammar
will find it easy to disregard it, as in each lesson tlie
Subjects for Class Study have been divided into two
sections, one of which is devoted almost exclusively
to Grammar and Syntax. This grammatical section
can therefore be readily omitted, if desired. Sections
which are a summary revision of what has appeared in
.Part One of the course are indicated thus *.
VI
PREFACE
I have once again to express my very sincere acknow-
ledgments to those who have so courteously alJow<‘d
me to make use of copyright material : to Messrs.
Macmillan for the extract from Professor J. P.
Mahaffy’s Greek Antiquities, and for the extract from
Dr. Henry Bradley’s Making of English ; to Sir
Robert Bridges and the Clarendon Press, Oxford, for
A Passer-By ; to Mr. John Murray and Sir Henry
Newbolt for He Fell among Thieves ; to Messrs. Elk*n
Mathews and Mr. Lionel Johnson for By the Statue of
King Charles at Charing Cross ; to Messrs. Constable
and Mr. Walter dc la Mare for The Listeners ; to
Messrs. Martin Seeker and Mr. Martin Armstrong for
the extract from Miss Thompson goes Shopping (taken
from 2'he Buzzards ) ; and to the Poetry Bookshop
and Mr. Harold Monro for Milk for the Caf.
LANCELOT OLIPHANT.
NOTE TO SECOND EDITION
Except for some additions to Lesson XX., Section (/),
and the correction of a few misprints, no alteration has
been made in this edition.
L. O.
CONTENTS
{For List of Extracts, see ix)
SECTION ONE
LESSON PAGE
I. A Little Talk on T^biarnino English —
Sentence, Phrase, and Ci.ause — Sub-
ject AND Predicate — Parts of Speech . 2
II. Literary Appreciation — About Nouns . lo
III. A Few Hints on Spelling — About Verbs . 1ft
IV. Sentences : Long and Short — About Ad-
jectives . . . . .25
V. The Use of Words : Simpijcity — About
Adverbs . . . . .32
VI. How TO Write a Good Sentence — About
Pronouns . . . . .40
VII. Clause Analysis — Analysis of a Simple
Sentence — T wo Uses of the Relative
Pronoun . . . . .47
VIIT. Writing a Paragraph — Summarising a
Paragraph . . . . .58
IX. Synthesis — About Conjunctions and Pre-
positions . . . ... 64
X. Revision 72
SECTION TWO
XI. The Use of Words : Synonyms and Mala-
PROPS — ^The Noun ; Number . . 82
XII. Reproduction of a Story-Poem — Punctua-
tion (i) . . . . .91
XIII. Narrative Composition — Punctuation (ii) . 101
vni
CONTENTS
LESSON PACE
XIV. Tiik Usk of WoRiis : Avoid Stano — Tim
Noun : Gisnofik .... 109
XV, Descriptive Composition— -The Noun :
Case ..... 117
XVI. wSoME Figures of Speech (i)— The Verr :
Numher and Person . . .126
XVII. Exposition -The Verb: Tense — Se-
quence of Tenses , . ,134
XVTII. Common Errors — The Verb; Voice . 142
XIX. The I^^ngeish Language : Borrowings —
The Verb : Moon , . . 150
XX. Revision ..... 157
SECTION THREE
XXL Summarising a Longer Passage — ^The
Verb Infinite .... 167
XXII. Direct and Rei»ortkd Speech — Twofoi.d
Usii pv Adjectives . , .176
XXllI. Metre and Verse (i)— Position of the
Adverb ..... 184
XXIV. The Engijsh Language : Some Makers
of English — The Right Preposition 198
XXV. Metre and Verse (ii) — Verse Composi-
tion ..... 200
XXVI. Letteh-Writing — The Difference be-
tween AN Adverb, a Conjunction,
and a Preposition . . . 209
XXVII. Conversation and Dialogue — More
Common Errors . . .216
XXVIII. The Diary — Figures of Speech (ii) . 224
XXIX. The English Language : Word-Making
— ^About Interjections . . 281
XXX. Revision ..... 235
Note . — In the body of the book, sections which are a
summaTy revision of subjects that liave appeared in Part
One of the Course are indicated thus *.
LIST OF EXTRACTS
LESSON
I. “ Moses at the Fair,” from The Vicar of Wake-
field, Oliver Goldsmith.
II. “ Moses at the Fair ” — (continued),
III. A Passer-By. Robert Bridges.
IV. “ The Discovery of Judge Jeffreys,” from The
History of England. Thomas Babington
INIacaulay.
V. The Education of Nature, William Wordsworth.
VI. ” Education in Amaent Greece,” from Greek Anti-
quities. J. 1*. Mahaffy.
VII. A Jacobite's Epitaph, Thomas Babington
Macaulay.
VIII. ” Shakespeare’s House,” from The Sketch Book.
Washington Irving.
IX. By the Statue of King Charles at Charing Cross.
Lionel Johnson.
X. ” Owls and their Habits,” from The Natural History
of Selborne. Gilbert W'hite.
XI. “ Miss Thompson visits the Fishmonger,” from
Miss Thompson goes Shopping, Martin
Armstrong.
XII. He fell among Thieves. Henry Newbolt.
Xlll. A Little Waif,” from David Copperficld. CnARLES
• Dickens.
X
LIST OF EXTRACTS
LKSSON
XIV. The Listeners. Wai.ter de i.a Mare.
XV. “ Anne Boleyn,” from The History of Eng-
land. James Anthonv Froude.
XVI. Simon Hanz. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
XVII. “ The Origin and Use of Money,” from The
Wealth of Nations. Adam Smith.
XVIII. Milk for the Cat. Harold Monro.
XIX. “ Saxon and Norman,” from Ivanhoe, Sir
Walter Scott.
XX. ” The Seven Ages of Man,” from As You Like It.
William Shakespeare.
XXI. “ Poor Peter,” from Cranford. Mrs. Gaskell.
XXII. ” Poor Peter (conlmMcd).
XXIII. To Autumn. John Keats.
XXIV. “A Maker of English,” from The Making of
English. Henry Bradley
XXV. Ozymandias of Egypt. Percy Bysshe Shelley.
XXVI. ” Advice to a Schoolboy,” from Hazlitt's Letters.
William Hazlitt.
XXVII. ” Mrs. Malaprop,” from The Rivals. Richard
Brinsley Sheridan.
XXVIII. ” The Great Fire of London,” from Pepys’s Diary.
Samuel Pepys.
XXIX. Peace Rejoicings,” from Walpole’s Letters.
Horace Walpole.
XXX. On his Blindness. John Milton.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH
COURSE
PART II
SECTION ONE
LESSON ONE
(a) Reading Exercise
MOSES AT THE FAIR
All this conversation, however, was only preparatory
to another scheme ; and indeed I dreaded as much.
This was nothinjr less than that, as we were now to hold
up our heads a little higher in the world, it would be
proper to sell the colt, which was grown old, at a neigh-
bouring fair, and buy us a horse that would carry a
single or double upon an occasion, and make a pretty
appearance at church, or upon a visit. This at first I
opposed stoutly ; but it was stoutly defended. How-
ever, as I weakened, my antagonist gained strength, till
at last it was resolved to part with him.
As the fair happened on the following day, 1 had
intentions of going myself ; but my wife persuaded me
that 1 had got a cold, and nothing could prevail upon
her to permit me from home. “ No, my dear,” said
she, “ our son Moses is a discreet boy, and can buy and
•sell to a very good advantage : you know all our great
II. — I
2 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
bargains arc of his purchasing. He always stands out
and higgles, and actually tires them till he gets a
bargain.”
As I had some opinion of my son’s prudence, I was
willing enough to entrust him with this commission ;
and the next morning I perceived his sisters mighty
busy in fitting out Moses for the fair ; trimming his
hair, brushing his buckles, and cocking his hat with
pins. The business of the toilet being over, we had at
last the satisfaction of seeing him mounted upon the
colt, with a deal box before him to bring home groceries
in. He had on a coat made of that cloth they call
thunder-and-ligh tiling, which, though grown too short,
was much too good to be thrown away. His waistcoat
was of gosling green, and his sisters had tied his hair
with a broad black riband. We all followed him
several paces from th<! door, bawling after him, “ Good
luck ! good luck ! ” till we could sec him no longer.
{To he continued,)
(6) Subjects for Class Study
I
A Little Talk on Learning English.
When you open this book you will already have had
some praetice in speaking and writing English. We can
therefore assume that, as this preliminary stage is over,
you arc now prepared to go ahead “ with a fixed deter-
mination to succeed or fail,” as a young essayist once
put it. ,
Let us talk to you for a few moments about how
to succeed. To begin with, there is the question of
grammar. How will grammar help you ? Well, to be
quite frank, it will not help you very much at first *
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 8
at all events, not while you are in actually
speaking and writing English. Bid it will help
you a great deal afterwards. For grammar is a
record of the way in which most educated people speak
and write, and the rul(‘s of grammar will consequently
enable you to gain a clear idea about language, and to
check the accuracy of what you have written if you
wish to do so.
Blit that is not all. Grammar will help you in tw^o
other directions : it will help you to understand the
exact meaning of great English writers, and thus more
fully to appreciate their work ; and, what is perhaps
of (‘qual im])ortance, it will also help you very con-
siderably wIk'ii you come to learn a foreign tongue.
But remember that grammar was made for man, and
not man for grammar.
If, then, grammar is not the main avenue to success,
what is ? The answer is simple — Reading English
and writing English. If you wish to write and to
appreciate good English you must read and study the
books where good English is to be found. There — ^in
the great books of the past and the present — you will
find the best possible models : words used as only
great craftsmen know how to use them, thoughts
expressed in clear and beautiful English, and stories of
sublime achievements and hcToic deeds that hold
children from play and old men from the chimney
corner. All this will fire your imagination and stir
your enthusiasm for great literature ; and once that
has happened your difficulties will almost have ceased.
Almost, but not quite. For if you wish to write
good English, as well as to appreciate it, reading is
not enough ; you must also practise — doggedly and
incessantly practise. Hence write something every
day. Write as much and as often as possible* Model
4 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
yonr work on passages from some of the great books
you have read. Study their effects — slavishly imitate
them if you like, just for the time being; you will
soon find a style of your own. Rut write, write, write.
And at tliat we can leave it.
II
♦Sentence, Phrase, and Clause.
A Sentence is a group of words that makes complete
sense ; a Clause is a sentence that forms part t»f' a
larger sentence ; a Phrase is a group of words that
makes sense so far as it goes, but not complete sense.
For example, “ As I \veakened, my antagonist
gained strength,” is a sentence ; “ As I weakened,”
and “ m}^ antagonist gained strength,” arc clauses ;
and “ my antagonist ” is a phrase.
♦Subject and Predicate.
Every sentencci can be divided into two parts ;
namely. Subject and Predicate. — The Subject is the
group of words or the single word that denotes the
person or thing of which something is said. The
Predicate is all that is said of the person or thing
denoted by the Subject.
In the sentence, All our great bargains are of his
purchasing,” the Subject is “ All our great bargains,”
and the Predicate, arc of his purchasing.”
♦The Parts of Speech.
All the words of a language can be divided into
eight classes, according to the particular work they do
in a sentence. These classes are known as the Parts
of Speech.
The two most important Parts of Speech are the
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 5
Noun, whose work it is to name the thing of which we
are speaking ; and the Verb, whose work it is to
denote what we arc saying about that thing.
If, however, we were obliged to use nothing but
nouns and verbs, we could not express our thoughts
very exactly. We therefore need some word or words
to make the meaning of other words more precise.
There arc two kinds of words that help us to do this :
Adjectives, whose work it is to limit the application
of a noun or its equivalent ; and Adverbs, ^v^hose work
it is to limit the application of any of the other i)arts
of speech, the Interjection excepted.
Thus, these four parts of speech — the Noun, the
Verb, the Adjective, and the Adverb — enable us to
make a statement and to qualify it. But if we are to
express our Ihoughts with smoothness and ease, we
also need certain connectives to link up words and
sentences. These connectives form two additional
parts of speech called Prepositions and Conjunctions.
Again, to avoid the constant repetition of nouns, we
need some words that can be used instead of nouns ;
and these we have in the class known as Pronouns.
Lastly, as the eighth part of speech we have the
Interjection. Words falling into this class are
merely exclamations which express emotion.
(c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1. For what special purposes are Reference Books used ?
2. In what places open to the public are Reference Books
usually to be found ?
3. Put down the names of all the different kinds of
Reference Books tliat you have ever heard of, and say in a
word or two what sort of information you would expect to
find in each.
* ^^^Look up the meanings of the following words : pre-
6
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
parntory^ scheme, coU, fair, antcigonist, prevail, discreet,
higgles, bargain, commission, perceived, bawling,
( d ) Exercises in Written English
1. Explain the meaning of each of the following ex-
pressions : to hold up our heads a little higher in the world,
a /iorse that would carry a single or double upon an occasion,
he always stands out and higgles, cocking his hat with pins,
his waistcoat was of gosling green.
2, Wlmt kind of fair was it that Moses visited ? In what
respects do you think that it differed from a modern fair ?
ti. Describe in your own way the appearance of Moses
after he liad bc-cii lit ted out for the fair.
4. Divide the following sentences into subject and
predicate ;
(a) My wife persuaded me that I had got a cold.
(b) Our son Moses is a discreet boy.
(c) His waistcoat was of gosling green.
(d) All this ctmversation w-us only preparatory to
another scheme.
' 5. Say wliat special work each word docs in the following
sentence : “ Oiir son Moses is a discreet boy, and can buy
and sell to a very g<»od advantage.”
{ c ) Exercises in SIpoken English
1. Make sentences which show that you know the true
meaning of any sixoi the words given in Section (c). Question
No. 4.
2. Give a short account of any fair that you yourself
have visited.
3. Point out anything unusual in the wording of the
following expressions, and say what each would be in
present-day English :
(a) It would be proper to sell the colt and buy us a
horse.
(b) This at first 1 opposed stoutly.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 7
(c) Nothing could prevail upon her to permit me from
home.
(d) 1 perceived his sisters mighty busy in htting out
Moses for the fair.
(c) As I had some opinion of my son’s prudence, I was
willing enough to entrust him with this com-
mission.
4. Give two words similar in meaning to each of the
following : scheme, neighbouring, antagonist, discreet,
prudence, dreaded, perceived, bawling, satisfaction,
5. Give the correct pronunciation of the following words ;
forehead, cinema, threshold, respite, gauge, potato, predict,
indict, fifth, gnome, ghoul, anemone,
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Point out some of the touches of quiet humour that
are to be found in this passage.
2. Wliat was Goldsmith’s object, do you think, in intro-
ducing conversation into the piece ? ^
3. Give the name of a well-known poem and a well-
known play that Goldsmith wrote, and briefly describe one
of them.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
Say, wHth some reasons, what opinion you can form as to
the character of the people who spend their spare time in
the following different ways :
{a) Helping their mother.
(b) Watching a football match or cricket match.
(c) Reading a novel.
(d) Going to a dance.
(e) Lying on their backs in the sun, and doing nothing.
(/) Studying at an Evening School for an examination.
(g) Trying to break a speed record.
(h) Gk)ing to the local cinema.
LESSON TWO
(a) Heading Exercise
MOSES AT THE FAIR {continued)
(Moses was so long absent at the fair^ thaU towards
nightfall^ the Vicar began to wonder what could
he keeping him.)
“ Never mind our son/’ cried my wife ; “ depend
upon it he knows what he is about. I’ll warrant we’ll
never see him sell his hen of a rainy day. I have seen
him buy such bargains as would amaze one. I’ll tell
you a good story about that, that will make you split
your sides with laughing. — But, as I live, yonder comes
Moses, without a horse, and the box at his back.”
^ As she spoke, Moses came slowly on foot, and
sweating under the deal box, which he had strapped
round his shoulders like a pedlar. “ Welcome,
welcome, Moses ! well, my boy, what have you brought
us from the fair ? ” — “ I have brought you myself,”
cried Moses, with a sly look, and resting the box on
the dresse^r^‘*^y, Moses,” cried my wife, “ that we
know ; but where is the horse ? ” — “ I have sold him,”
cried Moses, “ for three pounds five shillings and
twopence,” — “ Well done, my good boy,” returned
she ; “ I knew you would touch them off. Between
ourselves, three pounds five shillings and twopence is
bad day’s work. Come, let us have it then.” — ” I
have brought back no money,” cried Moses again.'
I have laid it all out in a bargain, and here it is,”
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 9
pulling out a bundle from his breast : ‘‘ here they are ;
a gross of green spectacles, with silver rims and-
shagreen cases.” — “ A gross of green spectacles !w
repeated my wife, in a faint voice. “ And you have
parted with the colt, and brought us back nothing but
a gross of green paltry spectacles 1 ” — “ Dear mother,”^
cried the boy, “ why won’t you listen to reason ? I
had them a dead bargain, or I should not have brought
them. The silver rims alone will sell for double the
money.” — “ A fig for the silver rims,” cried my wife,
in a passion : “I dare swear they won’t sell for above
half the money at the rate of broken silver, five shillings
an ounce.” — “ You need be under no uneasiness, ’j/
cried I, “ about selling the rims, for they are not
worth sixpence ; for I perceive they are only copper
varnished over.” — “ What ! ” cried my wife, “ not
silver I the rims not silver ? ” — “ No,” cried I, “ no
more silver than your saucepan.” — “ And so,” returned
she, “ we have parted with the colt, and have only got
a gross of green spectacles, with copper rims and
shagreen cases ? A murrain take such trumpery It
The blockhead has been imposed upon, and should
have known his company better.” — “ There, my dear,”
cried I, “ you are wrong ; he should not have known
them at all.” — “ Marry, hang the idiot I ” returned
she, “ to bring me such stuff ; if I had them 1* would
throw them in the fire.” — “ There again you are wrong,
my dear,” cried I ; “ for though they be copper, we
will keep them by us, as copper spectacles, you know,
are better than nothing.”
Oliver Goldsmith :
The Vicar of Wakefield,
10 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
{ b ) Subjects fob Class Study
I
Literary Appreciation.
As every lesson in this book contains one or more
exercises in literary appreciation, or literary criticism,
as it is sometimes called, let us first of all explain to
you what these terms mean.
The word “ appreciation,” in one of its senses,
conveys an idea or suggestion of approval, and this has
led many young people to imagine that what is required
in literary appreciation is lavish and unqualified
praise, no matter what their true opinion of the work
may be. On the other hand, when they are asked for
literary criticism, the word “ criticism ” seenis to
suggest hostility and attack, and they then appear to
think that the object of literary criticism is to find as
many faults as possible.
Both these views are of course quite wrong.
“ Litc'rary appreciation ” or “ literaiy criticism ”
means “ literary judgment,” and what is required of you
is not lavish praise or petty fault-finding, but a candid
and fearless statement of your real opinion of a book
or a poem or a piece of prose, after you have carefully
considered all that you think can be said both for it
and against it.
This opinion it is not always very easy to form,
because there are few definite rules of criticism by
which you can be guided. Literary appreciation is
mainly a matter of sound personal judgment, and you
must therefore do your best to cultivate this judgment
by reading good literature. You will thus acquire some
permanent standards of taste wdiich will enable you,
by comparing one work writh another, to tell the fals^
from the true, the dross from the gold.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 11
II
♦About Nouns.
A Noun is a word that names. As the subject of a
sentence it is the word that denotes the person or
thing of which something is said.
♦Classes of Nouns.
N(»uns are usually classified as Abstract and Con-
crete, Concrete Nouns being sub-divided into Proper,
Common, and Collective Nouns.
An Abstract Noun is the name of the quality,
attribute, or circumstance of a thing ; as artfulness^
beauty^ courage.
A Concrete Noun is the name of a whole thing ;
that is, it denotes an object that actually exists ; as
chair, room, blackboard.
A Proper Noun is a name used to denote an indi-
vidual object as distinct from all other objects ; as
William, Liverpool, BtLckingham Palace.
A Common Noun is a name tliat can be applied in
the same sense to any one of an indefinite number of
similar things ; as enicma, microphone, cricket-bat.
A Collective Noun is a name of a group of similar
units regarded as forming a whole ; as committee,
navy, library.
Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words : warrant,
amaze, yonder, pedlar, dresser, shagreen, paltry, varnished,
murrain, trumpery. Marry, stuff.
2. What kind of reference book would you consult to
find some information about each of the following :
(a) The year in w'hich Goldsmith was bom, his nation-
ality, some particulars of his life, the names of
the chief books he wrote. ^ j
12 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
/
(b) The si):uatioi^popu]aiion, and importance of Dublin.
(f) The denvalion 'the words neuralgia^ rhmoccroSf
Aiid thcrviomcter. < —
(d) The correct way of eating duck and green peas -
especially the peas. ^
(e) WJiat words there are in the English language wliich
Time with tenderly^ beauiiful, and family.
(/) The name of the author who wrote ; “ AVhere
Ignorance is bliss, ’tis folly to be wise.”
(g) The plot of 7'he Vicar of Wakefield.
( d ) ExMicTsi.!^ TN Written Engtjsh
1. Explain the meaning of each of the following ex-
pressions :
(a) We’ll never sec him sell his hen of a rainy day.
(b) 1 knew you would touch them ofl.
(e) 1 had them a dead bargain.
(d) A fig for the siher rims.
(e) A murrain take such trumpery.
(/) Marry, hang the idiot ! to bring me such stuff.
(g) 1 dare swear they w'on't sell for above half the
money a I the rate of broken siher.
2. Draw a careful word-portrait of the Vicar’s wife,
illustrating the view you take by reference to the extract.
3. Take dowm from dictation the following passage :
All that day, from morning until past sunset, the
cannon never ceased to roar. It was daA when the
cannonading s lopped all of a sudden.
All of us have read of what occurred during that
intcTVAl, The' talc is in every En glishman's mouth ;
and you and I, who were children wiien Ine great battle
was w'on and lost, are nc\er tired of hearing and re-
counting the history of that famous action.
Thackbray.
4. Tell, in the form of a little story, all about the trick
which was played upon Moses to induce him to part with
the money he had obtained for the hoise.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 13
5. Write down a word opposite in meaning to each of the
following): : rainy, laughing, resting, brought, faint, keep,
nothing, yonder, company, better, parted, passion,
{e) Exeiicises in Spoken Enoltstt
1, Use the following words and phrases in sentences of
your own : paltry, without a horse, with a sly look, pedlar,
amaze, between ourselves, a good story, in a faint voice, been
imposed upon.
*2. Comx)lete in your own words the following incomplete
sentences :
(a) I’ll warrant we’ll never
(b) I have seen him buy
(c) Hut, as I live
(d) The silver rims alone
(c) 1 perceive they arc only
(/) If I had them I would
3. Let the Vicar’s wife tell this story to a friend of hers,
exactly as you think she would have told it.
4. Give the correct pronunciation of the follow'ing words :
obdurate, telegraph, pass, lucid, one, lone, gone, illumine,
furry, flurry, erring, concurrence.
5. What insight do we get into tlie character of the
Vicar, his wife, and Moses, from the individual manner in
which each is made to speak ?
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Describe as clearly and fully as you can the style in
which this passage is written, illustrating your remarks
by quotations from the extract, and, if possiljle, from any
other passages you hav^c read.
2. Say in what books the following characters occur :
Wackford Squeers, Tiny Tim, Tony Lumpkin, Becky Sharp,
Portia, Mrs. Malaprop, Dr. Primrose, Christopher Robin,
^Captain Kettle, Dr. Watson, Brigadier Gerard.
Give a short description of any one of these characters.
14 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
( g ) Exercises in Thinking
Point out what is wrong in each of the following argu-
ments :
(a) As all Englishmen are Europeans and all Londoners
are Europeans, it follows from this that all
Ix>iulonc*rs are Englishman.
(h) All Ainerieans love liberty, but as no Englishmen
are Americans, it is obvious that no Englishmen
love liberty.
LESSON THREE
(a) Reading Exercise
A PASSER-liY
Whither, O splendid ship, thy white sails crowding,
Leaning across the bosom of the urgent West,
That fearest nor sea rising, nor sky clouding.
Whither away, fair rover, and what thy quest ?
Ah ! sooiip when Winter has all our vales ojiprest,
When skies art cold and misty, and hail is hurling,
Wilt thou glide on the blue Pacific, or rt^st
In a summer haven asleep, thy wliite sails furling^. '
•"I there before thee, in the country that well thou
knowest.
Already arrived am inhahng the odorous air :
1 watch thee enter unerringly where thoir goest.
And anchor queen of the strange shipping ^here,
Thy sails for awnings spread, thy masts bart' ; ^
Nor is aught fropi the foaming reef to the snow-capp’d,
grandest
Peak, t^iat is over ’feathery palms more fair
Than thou, so upright, so stately, and stiJl thou
standest. ^
And j^et, O splendid ship, unhail’d and namchss,
I know not if, aiming a fancy, I rightly divine^
That thou hast a purpose joyful, a courage blameless,
*Thy port assured in a happier land than xninet^
*5
16 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
But for all I have given thee, beauty enough is
thine,
As thou, aslant with trim tackle and shrouding.
From the proud nostril curve of a prow’s line
In the offing scatterest foam, thy white sails crowding
Robeut Bridges.^
(b) Subjects for Class Study
I
A Few Hints on Spelling.
The best way to learn how to spell correctly is to
read as widely and carefully as possible. When you
come upon a word which is new to you, or which you
find some difficulty in spelling, spell it aloud and then
write it down several times. In this way you will
have the aid of both ear and eye in impressing the
word on your memory.
Generally speaking, rules for spelling are of very
little use, but the following are a few exceptionally
important rules which you should find helpful :
1. Of the combinations ie and ei, use ie, except
after c ; as achieve, niece, fiend, believe ; but
receive, deceive, ceiling, perceive. — ^To this
rule there are some notable exceptions :
neighbour, heir, leisure, seize, reign, for
example. These, you will observe, are all
cases where, according to the rule, We should
“^expect ie. c, however, is always followed
by ei.
2. Some words have very nearly the same form for
both noun and verb. The commonest of
these are practice and practise, licence and
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 17
license^ advice and advise, prophecy Bxit
prophesy, — In such words, the noun ends
in ce or cy, and the verb in se or sy,
3. The endings us and ous are often confused.
You should therefore note that nouns end
in us and adjectives in oils ; as genius, focus,
phosphorus, fungus, census ; jealous, grievous,
wondrous, miraculous, rigorous,
4. Final e is usually dropped before the endings '
ing, dge, and aide ; as loving, placing,
grazing ; judgment, acknowledgment, abridg-
ment ; movable, desirable, valuable. The e,
however, is retained in dyeing and singeing.
Why?
5. When ed or ing is added to a word, the final
consonant is doubled in words of one.,
syllable, in which the vowel is short ; as
getting, stopping, batting ; and also in words
of more than one syllable, if the last syllable
is stressed ; as referring, incurring, occurring.
When, however, the last syllabic is not
stressed, or is long, doubling docs not take
place ; as benefited, riveting, differing ;
revealing, regaining, siLstaining, — If the last
sylla^ble is short, and ends in s or /, then this
s or I is doubled whether the last syllabic
be 'stressed or unstressed; as tumielling,
traveling, foctissing.
11
♦About Ver^,
A Verb is U word which enables us to make a state-
ment about a thing. The word “ watch,” for example
in the sentence, “ I watch thee enter.”
18 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
^Complement and Object.
Sonic verbs do not make complete sense until a word
or a group of words is added ; as in the following :
(a) All this conversation rvas (only pre-
paratory to another scheme).
{b) Our son Moses is (a discreet boy).
(c) My antagonist gained (strength).
(d) My wife persuaded (me).
When, in order to complete the s(‘nse, we add a word
or a group of words that refers to the same thing as
the subject, as in (a) and (b), we have what is called
the Complement of the verb. When we add a word
or a group of words that refers to a differe nt thing,
as in (c) and (d), we have what is called the Object
of the verb.
♦The Transitive and Intransitive Use of Verbs.
Verbs can be divided into two classes — ^Transitive
and Intransitive. — A verb is used transitively when
it expresses an action exercised by the doer upon some
object ; as in, “ My wife persuaded me.” A verb is
used intransitively when it expresses an action that is
confined to the doer ; as in, “ He always stands out
and higgles.”
Thus, verbs that require an object to complete their
meaning are said to be used transitively, and those
that require a complement, or make complete sense by
themselves, are said to be used intransitively.
♦Direct and Indirect Object.
The Direct Object of a verb is the \jford or group of
words directly affected by its action as in, “ They
gave him a present
The Indirect Object denotes the person to or for
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 19
whom an action is done ; as in, “ They gave him a
present.”
^C^^XERCIRES IN THE Ure OF REFERENCE BoOKS
1. Find ill your diciioiuiry the meanings of iliese words :
urffent. whither, tpicsl, rover, oppressed, hurliu}*, haven,
furling, inhaUng, odorous, unerringly, axonings, foaming,
reef, unhailed, aslant, trim, tcickle, shrouding, prow, divine,
2, Say what information you would expect to find in each
of the following Reference Books :
(a) Who’s Who. . -
(b) Bradshaw, w ^
(c) Brewer’s R( a<ler’s Handbook, d
{d) The Concise Oxford Dictionary,
(g) Debrctt.
(/) Who was Wio. ^ ^
(g) Tlie Dictionary of National Bi^raphy
(h) The Children’s Encyclopaedia.
(i) A Dictionary of Dates. < ^
(j) Mrs. Beeton’s Cookery Book.
(k) I'lic Home Doctor.
(0 livery One His Own Lawyer.
(d) Exercises tn AVritten Engmsii
1. Use each of the following phrases in sentences of your
own : fair rover, the blue Pacific, summer haven, white sails,
foaming reef, feathery palms, happier land, strange shipping,
trim tackle, so stately, all our vales,
2. “ AVhither away, fair rover, and what thy quest f’
says the poet. Write a romantic and adventurous little
story in which these questions are answered.
3. Fill in all the blanks in the follo'^^ing :
Once upon a the Wolves sent an embassy to
the desiring that there might be / between
them. “Why,” said “should we be for
ever this strife ? Those Dogs
are th^*.^-.^T^ of all ; they are incessantly at
20 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
us, and us. Send them ! . . and there will
be no lonj^er any . . ' to our cterhal /. ..... and
■” The silly .' listened, the . . were
and the . 1 Jtbus of their best
bceanic an easy Cij . to their enemy.
s. .®SOP.
4. (iive a description of some sailing ship that you your-
self have seen, usiiifr as many as possible of the words
mentioned in Question 1, Section (c).
5. Express in a single word the meaning of each of the
following :
Remaining in one place, not nujving. ^
Notepaper and envelopes, and writing materials in
general. /.
Growing in fvreat abundance.
Given to the habitual use of costly food^ dress,
V furniture , etc. V a . ' a. -a
/(c) That which <5an Ihj achieved by means xhat are
4 readily available.
I (/) That which can be turned to definite and direct use.
(These words go in pairs, as indicated by the bracket,
and the two words in each pair arc very similar in sound
and spelling.)
r(«)
(ic)
\{d)
(c) P^xKRcrsEs IN Spoken English
1 . Explain the meaning of each of the following phrases :
thy white sails croivding, the urgent West, when Winter has all
our vales oppressed^ queen of the strange shipping, thy sails
for awnings spread, thy port assured, unhailed and nameless,
aiming a fancy.
2. Mention one Avord similar in meaning and one word
opposite in meaning to each of the following : splendid,
rising, vale, cold, misty, odorous, enter, strange, stately, still.
3. In the following sentences name the verlis that are
used transitively and those that are used intransitively,
the complement, the direct object, and the indirect object :
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 21
S >
(a) Skies art^'cold and misty
(b) Winter hiis all our vales'bppressed.
(c) I watch thee enter unerringly.
(d) Beauty enough is thine.
{€) They gave her a garland of sweet flowers.
4. Tell the story of the greatest surprise that you have
ever had in your life.
5. Give the correct pronunciation of the f^
of famous muslins, string whej
Bach^Mem
of each
GoaHod, Sef^ert, j^dereuSski. Grii
Brahms^ V^di, Pa^nini^ El0r:
GfqJ^wing names
you caf^’yi^^ation^ty
^sohn^ Wagifert Ch^iniy
Strauss, Tchaikd&fikiy
(/) Exekcises in tup: Appreciation oe Literature
1. You will know, roughly sx^eaking, what is the differ-
ence between verse and prose, lie-read A Passer-By^ and
then find in the poem examples of six words that would not
be used in prose, and of four phrases or sentences in which
the words arc not arranged in their usual prose order.
2. What is meant by “ the Poet Laureate ” ? Who is the
present Poet Laureate ? Mention something that he has
written. Who was the best-known Poet Laureate wc have
had ?
8. Say, with some reasons, and in as detailed a manner as
possible, wdiat impression this poem has made upon you.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
An artist, writing in the Daily Express on Colours that
Stimulate your Appetite,” says : *
Appetites are greatly influenced by the colour of
food, and even a banquet tastes insipid in darkness.
Try to eat a dinner blindfolded and experience it for
yourself.
Our senses continually react to colour, which is at
the basis of many of our likes and dislikes. Some
colours stimulate the appetite, while others definitely
* do not.
22 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
The aver.sioii to grey skies, fur example, communi-
cates itself to grey food — Irish stew without the carrots
look.') a forbidding mess of grey - while the association
of fog with peasoiip has created a distaste for the soup
among many Londoners.
Say, with your reasons, which you regard as the most
and which as th«i least appetisitig colours, mentioning s()me
particular kinds of food in illustration of what you mean.
LESSON^ FX)UR^
(a) flEADING ^EXKllCIS^
THE DISCOVERY OF JUDGE JEFFREYS
A scrivener who lived at Wapping, and whose trade
it was to furnish men there with iJioney at high interest,
had some time before It^nt a sum on bottomry. TJie
debtor applied to equity for relief against liis bond ;
and the case came before Jeffreys, ,
The counsel for the borrower, having' little else to
say, said that the lender was a trimmer.
The Chancellor instantly fired. “ A trimmer !
Wht‘re is he ? L(;t me sec him. 1 have heard of that
kind of monster. Wh<at is it made like ? ”
The unfortunate cre ditor was forced to stand forth.
The Chancellor glared fiercely on him, stormed at him
and sent him away
“ While I live,” said the poor man, as he tottered
out of the court, “ I ^all never forget that terrible
countenance.”
And now the day of retribution had arrived. The
trimmer vras walking through Wapping, when he saw
a well-known face looking out of the window of an
ale-house. He could not be deceived. The eyebrows,
indeed, had been shaved aw’^ay. The dress was that
of a common sailor from Newcastle, and was black
with coal-dust ; but there was no mistaking the
savage eye and mouth of Jeffreys.
’The;alarm*-was given. In a moment the house was
* ' * ' Z3
24 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
surrounded by hundreds of people shaking bludgeons
and bellowing curses. The fugitive’s life was saved
by a company of the trainbands ; and he was carried
bofore the Lord Mayor.
VThe Mayor was a simple man who had passed his
whole life in obscurity , and was be^^ildered by finding
himself an important actor in a mighty r evolution.
The events of the last twentvrfour hours, and the
penkyis^tatc of the city which was under his charge,
had disordered h is mind and his body. When the
groat man, at whose frown, a few' days before, the
whole kingdom had trembled , was dragged into the
justice room bc grimcvcl with ashes, half dcaid^wjb,
fright, and followed by a raging multilu^, the
ti^ of the unfortunate Mayor rose to the heigjjt. He
fell into fits, was carried to his bed, whence he never
' rose.
Meanwhile the throng without was constantly
becoming more numerous and more savage. Jeffreys
begged to be sent to prison. An order to that effect
was procured from the lords who were sitting at
Whitehall ; and he was conveyed in a carriage to the
Tower.
Two regiments of militia were drawn out to escort
him, and found the duty a dilTicult one. It w’as
repeatedly necessary for them to form as if for the
purpose of repelling a charge of cavalry, and to present
a forest of pikes to the mob.
The thousands who were disappointed of their
revenge pursued the coach with howds of rage to the
gate of the Tower, brandishing cudgels, and holding
up halters full in the prisoner’s view'. The wretched
man meantime was in convulsions of terror. He
wrung his hands ; he looked wildly out, sometimes at
one window, sometimes at the other, and was heard
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 25
even above the tumult, cr\dng, “ Keep tliem off,
gentlemen ! For God’s sake keep them off ! ”
At length, having suffered more than the bitterness
of death, he was safely lodged in the fortress where
some of his most illustrious victims had passed their
last days, and wlierc his own life was destined to close
in unspeakable ignominy and horror.
Thomas Babington Macaulay :
History of England.
{ h ) Subjects for Class Study
I
Sentences : Long and Short.
If you carefully study this extract from Macaulay’s
History of England, you will sec that the sentences
vary greatly in length, some consisting of only three or
four words, and some of more than thirty. What then
is it that decides the length of a sentence ? Should
you make your sentences long or short ?
It depends to a great extemt upon the effect you
wish to ’produce. Short sentences are simple, clear,
and direct, and impart crispness and animation to a
story. Take, for example, the third paragraph of the
extract ;
The Chancellor instantly fired. “ A trimmer I
Where is he ? Let me see him. I have heard of
that kind of monster. What is it made like ? ”
The crispness and animation of this is undeniable.
Every sentence is hammered out with ringing force.
And that is the effect at which Macaulay was aiming.
On the other hand, the long sentence is suitable
when there is a thought with several qualif 3 nng circum-
stances to be expressed, or when you wish to lend a
26 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
certain dignity and impressiveness to what you write ;
as in the following :
H(! disengaged his lance from his saddle, seized
it w^iih the right hand, placed it in rest with its
point half (‘leva ted, gatherc^d up the reins in the
left, w^aked the horse's mettle with the spur, and
prepared to encounter the stranger with the calm
self-contidencc belonging to the victor in many
contests. — S cott.
Both short and long sentences, howwer, have tlieir
drawbacks. Short sentences, if iis(‘(l to excess, becomes
abrii])t, harsh, and tinpk'asing ; and long sentences,
unless skilfully constructed, become trailing and
obscure.
The best plan is to vary the length of j’^our sentences,
making some short and some fairly long, after the
manner of MacauLay in the eighth and eleventh para-
graphs of his narrative. This will go far to ensure
that your sentences are neat and clear, and have a
pleasajit How and cadence.
II
About Adjectives.
An Adjecliv(*, wc have seen, is a word used to limit
the application of a noun or its equivalent. If, for
example, wc use the word book by itself, we mean any
book ; but if we use an adjective and say this book, we
limit llie application of the noun to the one particular
book wc arc indicating.
Glassies of Adjectives.
Adjectives can b<' divided into various groups
according to the particular kind of limiting work they
do.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 27
Tliere are those i hat answer the question “ What
sort ? ” such as red, French, soft. These arc called
Adjectives of Quality.
There are those* tliat answer the question “ How
much ? ” or “ How many ? sucli as three, some,
Httle. These arc called Adjectives of Quantity.
Then* are those that answer the question “ AVhieh ? *’
such as that, my, every. These arc called Pronominal
Adjectives, because they in some respc'cts resemble
pronouns.
Pronominal Adjectives are usually divided into
the following smaller groiqxs : Demonstrative, or
thos(‘ that ])oint out, such as the, this, that ; Inter-
rogative, or those that ask a question, such as which ?
and what ? ; Possessive, or those that denote pos-
session, such as her, our, their ; Distributive, or
those that refer to one thing .at a time*, such as each,
every, either ; Indefinite, such as a, certain, other ;
and Relative, such as which, what, whatever.
♦Comparison of Adjectives.
There are three degrees of comparison : Positive,
in which we use the adjective without any comparison ;
Comparative, in which wc compare two things to-
gether ; and Superlative, in which we compare more
than two.
t
♦Formation of Comparative and Superlative.
In words of one syllable, and in some words of two
syllables, the comparative is formed by adding -er,
and the superlative by adding -est, to the positive. In
longer words, however, the comyjarative is formed by
putting more, and the superlative by putting most,
in front of the adjective to be compared.
28 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
/^Exehcises in the Use of Reference Books
jT Find in your dictionary the meanings of the following
words : creditoTy retribution, bludgeons, fugitive, perilous,
begrimed, militia, repelling, pikes, cudgels, convulsions,
illustrious, ignominy, unspeakable, scrivener, bottomry, equity,
bond, trimmer, trainband.
2. Refer to a History of England or a Biographical
Dictionary for some information about Judge Jeffreys.
(d) ExERcrsES IN AVkjttkn English
1. Explain clearly the ineaiiirig of each of the following
words : equity, bond, trimmer, trainband, bottomry, scrivener.
2. Tell in your own words the story of the discovery
of Judge Jeffreys, making your account as animated and
dramatic as you can.
3. Take down from dictation the paragraph beginning :
“ Tlie Mayor was a simple man,” and ending, “ whence lie
never rose.”
4. Rewrite the first four paragraphs in three sentences,
using, so far as possible, the wording of the original. Then
compare your version with Macaulay’s, and say what
you think has been gained or lost by the change,
5. Give two words similar in meaning to each of the
following : unfortunate, tottered, terrible, savage, constantly,
procured, perilous, ignominy, ilhisirious.
(r) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use in scnienecs of your own each of these words and
phrases : monejf at high interest, having little else to say, the
day of retribution, fugitive, militia, bludgeon, glared fiercely
at him, looking out of the window of an ale-house, an im-
portant actor in a mighty revolution, convulsions of terror.
2. Point out all the little facts and descriptive touches
in the extract which enable you to form an opinion of Judge
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 29
Jeffreys, and then, with tiie help of these, and some of the
additional information yon were told to collect, a
firmly drawn sketch of his character.
8. Give the correct pronunciation of the folio winjj names
of Shakespercan characters : Falslaff, Banquo^ Jaques,
Othello, lago, Caliban, Sycorax, Mark Antony, Cleopatra,
Malvolio, Sltylock, Desdemona, Viola, Rosalind, Hermione,
Ariel, Jessica, Cordelia. — In which plays of Shakespeare do
these characters appear ?
4. Mention the names of half a dozen performing animals
you have seen at a circus, and put two appropriate descrip-
tive adjectives before each.
5. What words mentioned in Question 1, Section (d) are
seldom heard at the present day V Try to give some ex-
planation of this.
( f ) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Carefully re-read the extract, and then consider the
various means that Macaulay has employed to stimu-
late the reader's interest and hold his attention. — Give
examples.
2. In this passage, Macaulay has repeated a phrase of
four words, once in describing the character of the trimmer,
and again in telling us about the plight of Judge Jeffreys.
Do you think that the repetition of this phrase is intentional
or merely an oversight ? What is your own opinion about
repeating words and phrases in this way ? Suggest one
or two other phrases that Macaulay might have used.
8..^tudy Macaulay’s use of the sentence in regard to its
length. Say whether you think he favours the long
sentence or the short ; why, in each case, he uses the par-
ticular kind of sentence you mention ; and whether the
result is pleasing or the reverse. — Compare Macaulay’s
practice in this respect with that of Goldsmith, as seen in
the passages given in Lessons One and Two.
30 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
{^) Exehcisp: in Thinking
Meiilioii sonic of the ways in which you can tell the
occupations of the various people tliat sit opposite to you
in the train, tram, aiul bus.-- Give definite examples
founded upon y'our personal observation.
LESSON FIVE
{ a ) Rkaoino Exekcise
TIIE EDUCATION OF NATURE
Three years she grew in siiii and shower ;
riicn Nature; said, “ A lovelier flower
On earth was never sown ;
This child I to myself will take ;
She shall be mine, and I wll make
A lady of my own.
“ Myself will to my darling be
Both law and impulse : and with me
The girl, in rock and plain,
In earth and heaven, in glade and bovrer.
Shall feel an overseeing power
To kindle or restrain.
She shall be sportive as the fawn
That wild with glee across the lawn
Or up the mountain springs ;
And hers shall be the breathing balm.
And hers the silence and the calm
Of mute insensate things.
’* The floating clouds their state shall lend
To her ; for her the willow bend ;
Nor shall she fail to see
3 *
82 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Even in the motions of the storm
Grace that shall mould the maiden’s form
By silent sympathy.
“ The stars of midnight shall be dear
To her ; and she shall lean her ear
In many a secret place
Where rivulets dance their wayward round,
And beauty born of murmuring sound
Shall pass into her face.
“And vital feelings of delight
Shall rear her form to stately height.
Her virgin bosom swell ;
Such thoughts to Lucy I will give
While she and I together live
Here in this happy d(*ll.” »
Thus Nature spake — Th» work was done —
How soon my Lucy’s race was run !
She died, and left to me
This heath, this calm and quiet scene :
The memory of what has been.
And never more will be.
William Wordsworth.
{ b ) Subjects for Class Study
I
The Use of Words : Simplicity.
If you glance through a dictionary you cannot fail
to be struck by the enormous number of words it
contains, and you may wonder whether you will ever
be expected to know the meanings of all these words.
Let us say at once that you will not ; for the great
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 88
majority of them are very little used. It has indeed
been computed that most people do not use more
than about three thousand words in all, and that it is
possible to manag(‘ fairly well with only a thousand.
Milton, who was a great scholar, used only eight
thousand words, and Shakespeare, who is noted for
his exceptionally large vocabulary, used only fifteen
thousand. If, therefore, there are, as some people
say, over a hundred thousand words in tl^e English
language, yon can cheerfully reject eighty thousand
of them, and still have a vocabulary larger than
Shakespeare’s.
But what about the remaining twenty thousand ?
How are you to decide amongst these ? — This is not
so difficult as it seems ; for you will find that in English
there arc usually two sets of words in which we can
express our meaning ; and that one of these sets
consists of long, unfamiliar words, mostly derived
from Latin, and the other of short, everyday
words, which have come down to us from Old
English.
The best plan is t-^ choose the short, everyday
words that arc known to us all, and to avoid, for the
time being at any rate, the big words derived from
Latin. Big words of course sound more imposing,
and for that reason many young people like them
better; but they arc not so clear, and are often less
effective.
Note, for example, the beautiful simplicity of the
diction in which Wordsworth’s poem is written.
Nearly all the words he uses are amongst the com^
monest in the language ; and yet with these familiar
words of everyday life he has been able to express
high and noble thoughts in a style of limpid purity.
Take the last stanza but two ;
n.— 3
34 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
The stars of midnight shall be (h^ar
To her ; and she shall lean her f‘ar
In many a secret plac(‘
Where rivuh'ts dance their wayward round,
And beauty born of murmuring sound
Shall pass into her face.
In such lines as those we have a perfect union of
expression and thought — not a word could be altered
without ruining the effect. If you doubt it, try the
experiment for yourself.
II
About Adverbs.
An Adverb is a word which modifies or limits a verb,
adjective, adverb, preposition, or conjunction.
Here are some examples :
He ran qidcldy to the spot. (Adverb modifying a
verb.)
There the sea was fairUly blue, (Adverb modify-
ing an adjective.)
The book was resting on the table. (Adverb
modiiying a preposition.)
It was exactly where I put it. (Adverb modifying
a conjunction.)
How Adverbs are formed.
Adverbs arc formed in the following ways :
(«) From Adjectives, by the addition of -ly ; as,
slozi\ slowly ; fierce^ fiercely.
(h) From Pronouns ; as, here, then, hither, thither.
(c) From Nouns ; as, needs, to-day.
(d) By combination — Compound Adverbs ; as,
meanwhile, thereupon, herein.
An adverb is sometimes of the same form as the
corresponding adjective ,* as, “ He ran very fastJ*'
A PROGRESSIVK ENGLISH COURSE 85
♦Comparison of Adverbs.
There arc three cl(‘."rccs of comparison, as in adjec-
tives ; positive, comparative, and superlative.
Some adverbs an* com])areiI by addiiicr -er to the
positive to form tlje comparative, and -est lo form the
superlative ; but the j^reatcr number take more and
moat.
Some eom])arison.s are irregular, and of tlu'se the
following should b(* earefully learnt :
Positive.
Cotnparaf ire.
Superlative.
well
better
best
ill
worse
worst
much
more
most
far
farther
farthest
forth
further
furthest
lai 0
lat(*r
last
Classes of Adverbs.
There arc two classes of adverbs :
1. Siinph’.
2. ConiK'etive.
Simple Adverbs arc those wliosc sole work it is to
modify the meaning of a word. They are classified
according to their meaning as under :
(^/) Time : noxv, then, soon, always, yearly.
(b) Place : here, hence, hither, thirdly.
(c) Manner : well, ill, swiftly.
(d) Quantity, or Degree : quite, very, little.
(e) Certainty : not, perhaps, certainly.
(/) Reason and Consequence : thus, why, therefore.
Connective Adverbs are those wliich, besides
modif 3 dng the meaning of a word, join clauses to-
gether, and are therefore combined adverbs and con-
junctions ; as, “ It shall certainly be done, when I
66 A PJIOGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
have time to do it.” — In this sentence, when, in addition
to the modifyinfr work it does, joins tojnr(‘thcT the
clauses, ” It shall certainly be done,” and “ I have
time to do it.”
ExKucisr.s IN TiTK UsK OF Reff-hknce Rooks
'l. Find in your dictionary the meaiiinjr of the folio wirijr
words : education, lady, law, impulse, filnde, bower, kindle,
restrain, sportive, insen sale, rivulets, waipvard, vital, dell,
race, heath.
2. Make use of the ri^lit Reference Rf>oks to find out
some information about eaeli of the following :
(a) Oliver Goldsmith.
{b) William Wordsworth.
(c) Robert Bridges.
(d) Exf:rcise.s in Written Enoi tsh
1. Add suitable subjeets, other than those in the poem,
to each of the following predicates :
(a) was never sowm.
(b) slijill be sportive as the fa^vn.
(c) up the mountain springs.
(d) dance their wayw^ard round.
(e) feel an overseeing power.
2. (^i ve an account of the most awkward and embarrassing
thing that you have ever said or done.
3. Point out the Adverbs in each of the following sen-
tences, put them into their proper classes, anti say what
words they limit :
(а) They will now do exactly as you. wish.
(б) It is perhaps here that we sliall find the treasure.
(c) The work was certainly well done, although not
quite so well as we expected.
(d) Thirdly, there is very little to choose between the
two ; hence, it does not really matter which one
we buy.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 87
4. Describe what you imagine to have been Uic dress,
appearance, and character of Lucy. — Do not forj^ct that
this poem was written about a hundred years al'o.
5, Point out anything absurd in the following, and
suggest iinprovcinents :
(tt) A net is a lot of holes tied up with string.
(6) During the Great Fire of lA)ndon the worst flaming
place was Sf. Paul's ('athedral.
(c) TJie degretis of comparison of bad are : bad, very
sick, dead.
(d) Quadrupeds lias no singular, as you can't have a
horse with one leg.
(c) Algebra was the wife of Euclid.
(/) Many faces toed the line at our school walking-
inatcli.
I (e) Exercises in Spoken Enoush
1, Use the following words and phrases in sentences of
your own : sun and shozver, a lovelier floxver, education,
wayward, insensate, as the faxvn, the floating clouds, vital,
murmuring sound, feelings of delight, this calm and quiet
scene, impulse, bower.
2, Express eacli of the following in simpler English :
(a) Thank you, madam ; the agony is abated.
{b) They continued to remain in the same house for
twenty years.
(c) He is a perverter of the truth, for he has been
proved to have uttered a terminological in:
exactitude. •
(d) His frontispiece w'as adorned with a prominent
olfactory organ,
(c) While I was in the vicinity of the palace which is
frequented by the devotees of the dance, 1 met
an individual whose sartorial aspect exceedingly
offended my optics.
3, Describe as vividly as you can the greatest thrill
that you have ever experienced.
38 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
4. Give the Cijrrect proiiuneintinn of Uie names of the
follo>ving iamons witei-s : Gcojfrey Chaucer^ Samuel Pepys,
Lciiih IlutU, William Shakespeare ^ Johti Donne^ Willlkm
Hazlilli Uohert Herrick. William Cawper, Dartie Gnbnel
Rossetti^ Charlotte RronR, Edmund Spenser. John Keats.
5. Kxplaiii the meanin^r of each of the following :
(a) New brooms sweep clean.
(b) All’s well that ends well.
(c) You ean’L make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.
(d) It is never too late to mend.
(6) Two of a trade never agree.
(/) Exkucisk.s tn tjil: ArritEciATioN" or LrrKKATiTiti:
1. Hearing in mind the title of the poem, explain its
general meaning as well as you can.
2. Pick out what you consi<ler to be («) tlie most beautiful
lino, (b) the most beautiful stanza, in the poem. Give
some reasons for your elioiec.
3. Compare Wordsworth's poem with A Passer-Ry, given
in Lesson Three. Say which poem you prefer, and why you
prefer it.
4. Give a short account of the work of either Oliver
Goldsmith, or William Wordsworth, or Robert Rridges.
(g) ExEncisF. IN Thinking
What is the difference between Rates and Tajres ? Men-
tion some of the services for which we pay rates, and some
for which wc pay taxes.
^E^ON SiV
(«) ExKRCJSE
0 .
EDUCATION Vh ANCIENT OUEECE
As for tlic ^irls of thi^ house, tJicy were brought up
to see and hear as littl^ as possible. They only went
out upon a few stat(‘ occasions, and knew to work
wool and weave, as well as to cook. We nuiy fairly
infer that the great majority of th(‘nri could not read
or WTite. The boys, on the contrary, were subject(‘d
to tli' most careful education, and on no yx^int did the
Grecnt lawgivers and philosophers spend more care
than in the })ropcr training, both jdiysical and mental,
of I heir eitiy.(*ns. The modc^rn system, however, of
public school training was not practised anywhere
save at Sparta, where a state schoolmaster was
appointed, and all the Spartan boys taken f)ut of the
control of their parents. They lived together under
the care of cider boys, as \vell as masters, so that the
system of monitors, and even that of fagging, Avas in
ordinary practice. They were encouraged to light
out their dis]»utes, and Averc much giA^eii to s])orts and
athletic amusements, just like our schoolboys. But
the public school training and discipline lasted much
longer at SjKirta than among us, and embraced the
university period, as well as the school period, of life.
In the other states of Greece, which were chiefly
towns, or suburbs of towns, the system of day schools
was universal, and the boys went to and from home
39
40 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
under the charge of a special sLnve, chosen because he
was no longer fit for hard work. He was called the
boys’ leader, or pedagogue, a word which never meant
schoolmaster among the Greeks, though it is so rendered
in our English Rible (Gal. Hi. 24). The discipline of
boys was severe, and they were constantly watched
and repressed, nor were they allowed to frequent the
crowded market-place. Corporal punishment was
commonly applied to them, and the quality most
esteemed in boys vvas a blushing shyness and modesty,
hardly equalled by the girls of our time. Neverthe-
less, Plato speaks of the younger boys as the most
sharpwitted, insubordinate, and unmanageable of
animals.
J. P. Maiiaffy : Greek Antiquities.
( h ) Subjects fou Class Study
T
How to Write a Good Sentence.
The best way to learn how to write a good sentence
is to study some good sentences that have already
been written ; some of the work of Macaulay, Ruskin,
or Robert Louis Stevenson, for example. If you do
this, you wiHui^^ that a good sentence must possess
three definite
1. Uiut^^^^*
2. Emphasis.
3. Coherence.
Unity.
A sentence has unity when it contains only one
main fact. There may be other facts in the sentence,
especially if it is a long sentence ; but, however long
the sentence may be, all these facts must be sub-
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 41
ordinate to the one main fact, and must bear closely
upon it.
Take the following sentence for example :
In the other states of Greece, which were
chiefly towns, or suburbs of towns, the system of
day schools Avas universal, and the boys went to
and froni home under the charge of a special
slave, chosen bc'cause he was no longer fit for
hard work.
Here the main fact is that in the other states of
Greece the system of day schools was uniA’^crsal ; and
all the other facts in the sentence bear in some way
upon this.
Emphasis.
Again, some w^ords in a sentence are much more
imi)ortanl than others, and you must see that the
right words are emphasised. How is tJiis to be done ?
There are tliree Avays in which emphasis can be gi\’^en
to a particular Avord or group of AA’^ords in a sentence :
1. Ry underlining it ; as in, “ I will never agree.”
2. Ry repeating it ; as in, I will never, never
agree.”
3. Ry putting it out of its usual order ; as in,
“ Never will I agree.”
»
The third way is much the best, and is that which
should usually be adopted. The emphatic positions in
a sentence are the beginning and the end, and the
normal order of words is : Subject — Predicate — Comple-
ment^ or Subject — Predicate — Object. Hence to em-
phasise any particular word, take it out of its usual
position and put it at either the beginning or the end
Here are some examples ;
42 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Unemphatic : He gradually recovered.
Emphatic : Gradually he recovered.
Vnemphatic : She is always seeking happiness.
Emphatic : Happiness is wluit she is nJways
seeking.
Vnemphatic : The road wc must take is there.
Emphatic : There is the road we must take.
Coherence.
Tliis simj)ly means that all tlu' words in a sentence
should be arranged in their |>rop(‘r order, and, in
particular, that qualifying words should be put as
near as possible to the words they qualify — adjectives
next to their nouns, and, generally speaking, adverbs
next to their verbs, etc.
Look, for exaTn])le, at the second sentence in the
extract. Is this sentence perfectly coherent ? A
little consid<‘ration will show you lliat it is not. The
word cmly is in the wrong position. It lure stands
bcft)re wc7\t, but it is intended to modify a few, and
should therefore have been placed before those words.
II
About Pronouns.
A Pronoun is a word used instead of a noun. It is
not }K‘rha])s absolutely indispensable, but it is a very
great convenience in helping to avoid the repetition
of nouns.
^Classes of Pronouns.
Pronouns arc divided into four groups ; Personal*
as he, you, they ; Demonstrative, as this, that, these
Interrogative, as who ? rvhich 9 what ? and Relative*
as who, which, that, as.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
43
Reflexive Pronouns and Emphasising Pronouns.
MysclJ\ yuurselj\ hint self, herself^ itself^ oneself, and
the plural forms ourselves^ yourselves, themselves, are
used both as Refit'xive Pronouns and Emphasising
Pronouns.
Reflexive Pronouns arc those which imply that
the subject acts upon hiinself, the pronoun always
being the object of the verb ; as “ lie shaved himself,
Here he and himself ho\h refer to the same person, and
the pronoun himself \% the object of the verb shaved.
Emphasising Pronouns are those which are used
to emphasise a noun or its e<]uivalent ; fxs “ They
themselves told us.” ILtc theinselves is not the object
of told, but merely cm]diasiscs they.
Relative Pronouns.
Relative Pronouns arc combined pronouns and
conjunctions ; that is to say, they {ire substitutes for
preceding noun, cjillcd the antecedent, and they join
together se ntences ; thus, “ This is the man who gave
me the information,” means “ A man gave me the
information. This is lu .” Here tJic relativ'c pronoun
is who, and its antecctlcnt man.
Of the relative pronouns who, which, and that, who
is used of ])ersoiis only, which of things only, and that
of both persons and things.
•
Exkrctsjes in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words, as used
in the extract giveif^mjffeiV»w6j>cted, Imcgivers, philosophers,
physical, mental, monitors, athletic, discipline, university,
suburbs, pedagogue, repressed, corporal, sharpwitted, in-
subordinate,
2, Refer to a map of Ancient Greece in a Classical Atlas
anh find the position of the following places : Sparta
44 A PROGRESSIVE ENGIJSH COURSE
Athens, Corinth, Thebes, Marathon, Peloponnesus, Arcadia,
Mount Olffmpus,
8. Ascertain from an encyclopaedia, or any other appro-
priate Reference Hook, for what cacli of the places men-
tioned above was famous.
(d) KxEucisiis IN Written English
(j^Use tlu'se words and phrases in sentences of your own
making : the girls of the house, the most careful education,
on the contrary, subjected, philosophers, just like our school-
boys, blushing shyness, sharpwiited, insubordinate, to and
from home, fit for hard zvork.
2. C^mtrast the girl of Ancient Greece with the girl of
to-day .
3. Say in which of the following sentences there is a
lack of Unity :
(а) As for the girls of the house, they were brought up
to see and hear as little as possible.
(б) Sluikcspcare wrote thirty-seven plays, besides
poems, and die<l in 1610,
(c) She was one of the most po]>ijlar speakers of the
day, and kept a pet monkey.
(d) TlK'y were encouraged to light out their disputes,
and wore much given to sports and athletic
amusements, just like our schoolboys.
(e) Henry the haghth delied the Pope, married six
wives, and died from eating a surfeit of
lampreys.
4. Rearrange the following sentences so as to emphasise
the words shown in italics :
(a) He turned slowly roimd, and spoke.
(b) Cambridge won the boat-race this year,
(c) Cambridge won the boat-race this year.
(d) Cambridge won the boat-race this year.
(The wording may be slightly altered, if necessary.)
5. What would you do, if you had five minutes bel6re
the microphone ?
A TROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 45
(f?) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Explain tho meaning of each of the following ex-
pressions : state occasions, Greek lawflivers, jmbUoschool
training, the si/stem of moniUtrs, fagging, university period,
suburbs of tozvns, corporal punishment.
Compare and contrast the school life of the boy in
Ancient Greece with your own school life.
3. Give a spoken answer, consisting of at least one com-
plete sentence, to each of the following questions ;
(a) What do you know about i^tarathoii ? ,
{b) Who were tlic Sfmrtans ? ^ ^ '
(e) Can you give tlie name of a great Greek statesm;ujk
or lawgiver and a great Greek philosopher ? Jt
(d) For what was Athens especially famous ?
(e) About how long ago <lid all this take place ?
(/) To what very common article of food does Corinth
give its name ? , / . *■ . ^
4. Give an account, humorous or otherwise, of the day
when everything seems to go WTong.
5. Give the correct pronunciation of the following names
of famous Ancient Greek writers : Homer, Sappho,
Mschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, Aristophanes, Plato,
Aristotle, Thucydides, Euclid, Theocritus, Lucian.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
Here are six short passages of verse. Some are very fine
indeed, and some are not quite so successful. First of all
divide the good from tlie bad, and then put the good passages
in what you consider to be their order of merit, giving
some reasons for the order you adopt :
(a) Magic casements, opening on the foam
Of perilous seas, in faery lands forlorn. • /
Keats.
(5) When love is strong, it don’t last long,
^ As many have found to their pain.
Dickens.
40 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(r) Match me such inarvcJ save in Kastcrn clime
A rose-red city half as old as time.
Burgon.
(d) Hut see ! tlie morn in russet mantle clad,
Walks o’(^r the dew of yon high eastward liill.
SlIAKKSr»KARE.
(e) And Betty’s most especial charge.
Was “ Johnny ! Johnny ! mind that you
Come home again, nor stop at all;
(>)me liomc again, what o’er hefal,
My Jolmny do, 1 pray you do.”
WoRDSwourii.
(f) Well, after many a sad reproach.
They got into a hackney coach.
And trotted down the street.
I saw them go. One horse was blind,
The tails of both hung down behind ;
Their shoes \rerc on their feet.
.I\Aii:s AND Horace Smith.
Gne of the above passages is intentionally bad : in
other words, it is a parody. Say whieli passage you think
this is, and which of the other passages it parodies.
(g) Exkiictse in Tihnking
I think it is a fair claim,” says ‘ Tommy ’ Handley, the
popular radio humorist, in the Daily Express^ “ that more
people laugh at broadcasting humour than at any other
kind, which means that the cars are superseding the eyes
as the gateways of humour. It is within the bounds of
possibility that a few years will see us comparatively sober
where humorous sights arc concerned, yet super-keen to
notice a piece of spoken humour.”
What is your opinion ? Do the things you hear or the
things you see make you laugh most ? Give some actual
examples, including humorous items you have heard on ]:he
wireless.
LESSON SEVEN
(a) Reading Exercise
A JACOBITE’S EPITAPH
To my true king I offer’d free from stain
Courage and faith : vain faith, and courage vain.
For him I threw lands, honours, wealth, away.
And one dear hope, that was more prized than they.
For him I languish’d in a foreign clime,
Grey-hair’d with sorrow in my manhood’s prime ;
Heard on Lavernia Scargill’s whispering trees,
And pined by Arno for my lovelier Tees ;
Beheld cjich night my home in fever’d sleep.
Each morning started from the dream to weep ;
Till God, who saw me tried too sorely, gave
The resting-place I ask’d, an early grave.
O thou, whom chance leiids to this nameless stone,
From that proud country which was once mine own,
By those white cliffs I never more must see.
By that dear language which I spake like thee,
Forget all feuds, and shed one English tear
O’er English dust. A broken heart lies here.
Thomas Babtngton Macaulay.
(b) Subjects for Class Study
1
Analysis.
Clause Analysis
To analyse a sentence is to take it to pieces with the
object of finding out how it has been l^ilt up. This
47
48 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
knowledge will help us to appreciate more fully the
exact construction of a sentence.
The simplest kind of analysis, as we saw in Lesson
One, is that of dividing a sentence into two parts;
namely, subject and predicate. But this does not
take us very far, and in addition we must know (1) how
to break up a complex sentence into its various clauses
and (2) how to analyse a simple sentence into its
component parts.
We have already told you a little about clause
analysis, but by way of revision, and before going on
to a consideration of the more detailed kind of analysis,
wc will recapitulate the main points in clause analysis
which it is necessary that you should know.
A Sentence is a group of words making complete
sense. A Clause is a sentence which forms part of a
larger sentence. A Subordinate Clause is one that
depends for its full meaning upon another clause,
usually the Main Clause.
There arc three kinds of sentences : Simple, Double,
and Complex. — A Simple Sentence is one that con-
tains only one subject and., one predicate; as, “A
broken heart lies here,” A Double Sentence (or
Compound Sentence) is one that is made up of two
sentences of equal importance ; as, “ Forget all feuds,
and shed one English tearJ*^ A Complex Sentence is one
that contains a main clause and one or more sub-
ordinate clauses ; as, “ I will remain here till you
return J"'
There arc three kinds of subordinate clauses :
Noun« Adjective, and Adverb. — ^A Noun Clause is
one that does the work of a noun ; that is, it is usually
the subject or the object of a sentence ; as, “ Tell me
where is fancy bred,*' An Adjective Clause is one that
does the work of an adjective ; that is, it limits i
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 49
noun or its equivalent ; as, “ These are the people who
will help An Adverb Clause is one that does the
work of an adverb ; that is, it limits any part of
speech except a noun or its equivalent ; as, “ This
happened when he was five years oldj*^
Detailed Analysis
A Simple Sentence or a clause of a Double or of a
Complex Sentence can be analysed into :
(Simple Subject (Noun or Noun-equiva-
Subject
J lent).
’ j Limitation of Subject (Adjective or Ad-
l jective-equi valent).
'Simple Predicate (Verb).
Limitation of Predicate (Adverb or
Adverb-equivalent).
Simple Object (Noun or Noun-equivalent).
Predicate . i or
Complement (Noun, Adjective, or equi-
valent).
Limitation of Object or of Complement
c (Adjective or Adjective-equivalent).
Here are two examples :
Analyse : The great ship suddenly struck the hidden rock»
Analysis.
Subject
{ Simple Subject : ship.
Limitation of Subject : (1) the, (2) great.
Predicate .
II.— 4
^ Simple Predicate : struck.
Limitation of Predicate : suddenly.
Simple Object : rock.
Limitation of Object : (1) the, (2) hidden.
50 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Analyse : Old Fagin was obviously a man to he feared.
Subject
le Subject : Fat^in.
* {Limitation of Subject : old.
rSimple Predicate : was.
I Limitation of Predicate : ob\iously.
Predicate . i Complement : man.
Limitation of Complement : (1) a, (2) to be
I feared.
IT
Two Uses of the Relative Pronoun.
There arc two uses of the R(‘lutivc Pronoun which it
is important that you should understand, as otherwise
you may get your clause analysis quite wrong.
A clause introduc('d by the relative zvho or zchich
may be either a subordinate adjective-clause or a
co-ordinate clause. It is a subordinate adjcctivc-
clausc if it defines or limits some preceding noun ;
and the relative is then termed a defining or restric-
tive relative ; as in, “ The man wJw told you that Avas
wrong.” It is a co-ordinate clause w'hen it does not
do this, but is equivalent to and he, and they, and this,
etc. ; as in, “ This Avas told me bj^ James Smith, who
is frequently zvrong,’'' The relative is then termed
non -defining or continuative. Note that the non-
delining relati\’*e is preceded by a comma.
^pEXEIiriSES IN THE UsE OF ReFEBENCE BoOKS
1. Look up the meanings of the following words :
Jacobite, epitaph, languished, clime, prime, sorely, feuds.
2. Give the derivations of these words : pantomime.
pneumatic, epitaph. Jacobite, microscope, rhinoceros, cenotaph.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 51
3. WImt is a gazetteer ? I’se a gaz(‘ttecr, or any other
appropriate Ilofercnec Bo(»k, to lu'Ip you explain tlie geo-
grapliical allusions in tliis poem.
{ d ) Exkkcisks in AVki'iten Engtjsii
1. Explain the meaning ol* the following expressions ;
free from stain, and o}ic dear hope that was more prized than
iheif, a foreign clime, pined hy Arno for my lovelier Tecs,
beheld each night my home in fei'er'd sleep, tried too sorely,
by those white cliffs 1 ‘never more must see, forget all feuds,
2. Who were the Jacobitr s V Say wliat you know about
them. In “what eountry did most of them go into exile ?
g^ Naine the clauses in the folk>wing, and them analyse
each (»f these clauses in detail :
(а) For him 1 threw lands, honours, wealth, away,
And one dear hope, that was more prized than they.
(б) That yon do wrong me doth appear in this.
(c) Wlien the jmlieeman arrived, the thieves w'ere
nowhere to be seen.
(d) 1 perish by this pc*oplc which 1 made.
4. Fill in all the blanks in the following passage :
It was a large room with some large maps
in it. 1 <loubt if I could have felt miurh if
the mai)s had been real foreign and I cast
away in the of them. I felt I was taking
a liberty to sit i with my cap in my on
the of the chair nearest the '. ; and when
the w'aiter laid a on purpose for , and
a set of casters on it, I must liave
turned red all over wdlh
5. Take down from dictation the following passage :
Romola rose from her reclininj? jjosture and sat
up in the lx)at. willing, if she could, t o resist the rush of
thoughts that urged themselves a long w'ith the coi)>
jecture h ow far the boat had carried h er. Wliy need
, she mind ? This was a ^hclter^d nook where there
were simple villagers w ho would not harm her. For a
62 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
little while, at least, she might rest and resolve on
nothing. Presently she would go and get some bread
and milk, and then she woul d jriestl^ i n the green quiet,
and feel that there was a p ause in her life,
Georgb Eliot.
(r) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use in sentences of your own each of the words given
in Question 1, Section (c).
2. Give the con*ect pronunciation of the following names :
Philip^ Jesse, Edwin, Ralph, Evelyn, Isaac, Esther, Rachel,
Julia, Blanche, MaheL Eleanor, Jocelyn,
Valeric l Au^etij CcciU Albert, M aureen , U)orecnM MarsoL
3. Who w^as “ my true king ” ? GivTasnort sketch of
his character, and say w’hethcr you think he was worthy of
all this devotion, 4 r
(Use a Reference Book, if necessary.)
4. Complete each of the following by using a clause
introduced by a relative pronoun :
(a) He bought a fine house
(b) It is Shakespeare
(c) These are the people , '
(d) That is not the kind of thing
(c) 'riicy at last eame to the town ......
5. Suppose you WTre asked to draw up your favourite
broadcasting programme, give a careful account of the
items it would contain, and state your reasons for including
those items.
(f) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1 . When a -writer arouses the feelings of pity and sadness
we have wiiat is called Pathos, Pathos has proved a pitfall
to some of our greatest writers — Shakespeare, Wordsworth,
Dickens, and Thackeray, for instance. The danger lies in
the tendency to force the note, to harrow our feelings
beyond all measure. For true pathos is achieved, not by
exaggeration, but by severe restraint.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 58
Bearing this in mind, say whether you think A Jacobite's
Epitaph is an example of true or of false pathos. Give
quotations from the {>oem, and discuss the question as
fully as you can.
2. Name the authors of tlie following works : 'Dtc Lays of
Ancient Rome, The Deserted Village, The School for Scandal,
The Vicar of Wakefield, A Passer-By, The Education of
Nature, Abou Ben Adhem, The Life of Nelson, Nicholas
Nicklcby.
{g) Exercise in Thinking
Say, with your reasons, whether you agree or disagree
with the following statements ;
(а) That it is unlucky to w'alk under a Uuider.
(б) That the best way to make a sulky fire burn is
to rest the poker on the top of it.
(c) That what is British is necessarily best.
(d) That no foreigners are to be trusted.
(c) That men and women should receive the same pay
for the same kind of work.
(/) That we all learn by experience.
LESSON HEIGHT
i
(a) Keadtng Exercise
SHAKESPEARE’S HOUSE
T had come to Stratford on a poetical pilf^rimage.
My first visit was to the house wIhtc Shakespeare was
born, and whe re, according to tradition, he was brought
up to his father’s craft of wool-eonribing. It is a small
mean-looking ediliee of wood and plaster, a true
nestling-place of genius^, which seems to dcliglit in
hatching its offspring in by-corn (‘rs. The walls of
its squalid chambers are covered with names and
inscriptions in every language, by pilgrims of all
nations, ranks, and conditions, from the prince to the
peasant, and |)rcsent a simple but striking instance of
the spontaneous and universal homage of mankind
to the great poet of nature.
The lioTisc is shown bj?' a garrulous old lady, in a
frosty red face, lighted up by a cold blue anxious eye,
and garnished with artificial locks of flaxen hair,
curling from under an exceedingly dirty cap. She was
peculiarly assiduous in exhibiting the relics with
which this, like all other celebrated shrines^ abounds.
There was the shattered stock of the very matchlock
with wJiich Shakespeare shot the deer on his poaching
exploits. There, too, was his tobacco-box, which
proves that he was a rival smoker of Sir Walter
Ralegh ; the sword also with which he played Hamlet ;
and the identical lantern with which Friar Laurelice
54
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 55
discovered Romeo and Juliet at the tomb ! There
was an ample supply also of Shakespeare’s mulberry-
tree, which seems to have as extraordinary powers of
self-multiplication as the wood of the true eross, of
which there is enough extant to build a ship of the
line.
The most favourite object of curiosity, however, is
Shakespeare’s chair. It stands in the chimney nook of
a small gloomy chamber, just behind what was his
father’s sho]). Here he may many a time have sat
wh(^ii a boy, watching the slowly revolving spit with
all the longing of an urchin ; or of an evening, listening
to the cronies and gossips of Stratford, dcalitjg forth
churchyard tales and legendary aiu*edoles of the
troublesome time's of England. In t^his chair it is
the custom of every one that visits the house to sit.
Whether this be doru' with the hope of imbibing any
of the inspiration of the bard, I am at a loss to say ;
I merely mention the fact : and mine hostciss privately
assured me that, though built of solid oak, such was
the fervent zeal of devotees, that the chair had to be
new' bottomed at least once in three years. It is
worthy of notice, also, in the history of this extra-
ordinary chair, that it partakes something of the
volatfle nature of the Santa Casa of Loretto, or the
flying chair of the Arabian enchanter ; for though sold
some few years since to a northern princess, yet,
strange to tell, it has found its waj'^ back to the old
chimney-corner.
^YASHI^GTON Ieving : Tile Sketch Book.
56 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
( h ) Subjects for Class Study
I
Writing a Paragraph.
When we are about to write a fairly long piece of
English, we shall find it advisable to begin by jotting
down a few headings to indicate the most important
topics with which wc intend to deal. The whole
composition 'will thus fall into certain broad divisions
each devoted to one of these topics, and each forming
what is known as Paragraph.
Length of a Paragraph.
What length -should a paragraph be ? It is not
possible to lay down any hard-and-fast rule ; but this,
at all events, can be said : it should certainly not be
very long. Long paragraphs are difficult to write, and,
like long sentences, hard to follow ; whereas short
paragraphs are. comparatively speaking, easily written
and readily grasped.
At the same* time, you must be careful not to make
your paragraphs too short. A paragraph, we have
seen, should deal with one main division of the subject,
and if you make it very short it will probably be doing
the work which ought to be done by the sentence. You
will thus confust; the reader, by mixing up the main
and the subordinate divisions of the subject.
Unity of the Paragraph.
But wiiatevcr the length may be, see that your
paragraph docs not contain more than one main topic
or one main theme. If it does, then it is a bad para-
graph ; or ratlier, it ^not one paragraph at all, lJut
A PBpGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 57
two that have been mistakenly written as one ; and
this is likely to be another source of confusion.
The theme may be either expressed or implied. If ex-
pressed, it is set forth in what is usually known as the
topic sentence. But whether the theme is expressed
or implied, there must be nothing in the paragraph
that does not help to develop or illustrate this theme.
In other words, the paragraph must have unity.
Lack of unity is due to three definite causes :
1. Putting two different topics into one paragraph.
2. Giving two separate paragraphs to what is really
one m.ain division of the subject.
3. Introducing into a paragraph matters which
have no bearing upon the theme or topic
sentence.
Special attention should therefore be paid to each
of these.
Let us consider the third paragraph of the extract in
the light of these remarks. This is a fairly long
paragraph, as it consists of six sentences, and contains
nearly two hundred words. But it is perfectly clear.
The topic sentence is the first, namely, “ The most
favourite object of curiosity, however, is Shakespeare’s
chair,” and every other sentence in the paragraph bears
upon that. Further, there is no violation of the three
rules of unit}’^ ; for it deals with only one main topic,
it docs not introduce any matters which have ’ no
reference to this topic, and it is complete in itself.
11
Summarising a Paragraph.
To summarise a paragraph is to give its substance in
as* few words as possible. After what has been said
58 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
above, the method to be adopted should be more or^
less obvious. We have seen, for instance, that every
paragra])h must contain a main theme. This theme
will thercjfore give you the pith of the paragraph. Of
the remaining sentences in the paragraph some merely
serve to illustrate the theme, while others seek to
establish or lead up to a conclusion which can be
inferred from the rest of the paragraph. Tliis con-
clusion will therefore rank next in importance to the
topic sentence itself.
Hence, in making a summary of a paragraph, first
of all find the tlieme or the topic sentence, then the
conclusion, if any, and leave out most of the amplifying ’
or merely illustrative matter. From these -j^articulars
you can write up your summary. This, of course,
should be expressed in your owm w^ords, and not
mainly in the language of the original.
^^Exercisks in the Use of Rkfehkxce Rooks
1. Look up the meanings f>f the following words, as used
in the extract given : pilgrimage, tradition, edifice, squalid,
inscriptions, spontaneous, homage, garrulous, garnished,
flaxen, assiduous, relics, matchlock, exploits, identical, extant,
spit, urchin, cronies, gossips, tegendary, inspiration, fervent,
zeal, devotees, volatile, partakes, enchanter,
2. In what kind of Reference Books would you expect to
^ find some information about the following ;
(a) Stratford -«t»n-Avt)n.
(b) Sir Walter Ralegh.
(e) Hamlet, Friar Laurence, Romeo and Juliet.
(flf) Shakespeare’s life.
Collect a few important facts about each of these.
3. Supposing you wished to spend a day at Stratford-on-
Avon , find out all the necessary information to enable you
to get there by rail, including ;
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 59
(a) Tlie line on which you would travel.
(b) The station from which you would pfo.
(c) Tlie fare you would have to pay.
(d) What train you would catch on the forward and on
the TC'luni journey.
{d) Exercises in Written Knclistt
1. Write a para^?raph, containing about half a. dozen
sentences, on any one of the subjcels (a) to (c) in Question 2,
Section (c), on tlie Use of Reference Rooks.
2. State I ho theme or the toj>ic sentence of tlie lirst
paragraph, and, by reference to the other sentences, show
how unity is pTescrve<l tiiroiighout.
3. Make a .summary of the third paragrapli, using about
si^ty Avords.
4. Write the following in simpler English ;
(a) It is a small mean-looking edifiee of w^ood and
plaster.
(h) The Avails of its .squalid chambers are covered with
names and inscriptions in every language, by
pilgrims of all nations, ranks, and conditions,
from Ibe prince to the peasant, and present a
simple but striking iiisianee of the spontaneous
and universal homage of mankind to the great
poet of nature.
(c) She Avas peculiarly assiduous in exhibiting the
rcliciih with AA'hich tins, like all other celebrated
shrines, abounds.
5. To avoid monotony and rfjpetition, substitute pro-
nouns for nouns in the following passage, wherever *you
think they are necessary :
“ Oh, it’s no use. Miss Summerson ! ” exclaimed Miss
Jellyby, “ though Miss Sellyby thanks Miss Summerson
for the kind intention all the same. Miss, Jellyby
knows how Miss Jellyby is used, and Miss Jellyby is
not to be talked over. Summerson wouldn’t be
* talked over, if Miss Summerson were used so."
60 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
0. “ Here,” says Washington Irving, “ he (i.e. Shake-
speare) may many a time have sat when a boy, watching
the slowly revolving spit with all the longing of an urchin ;
or of an evening, listening to the cronies and gossips of
Stratford, dealing forth churchyard tales and legendary
anecdotes of the troublesome times of England.” — Imagine
yourself to be one of these cronies and gossips of Stratford,
and make up a churchyard tale or a legendary anecdote,
such as you think the boy Shakespeare might have heard.
( e ) Exercises in Spoken PjNglish
1. Use each of the w'ords given in Question 1, Section (c),
in sentences of your own making.
2. Tell, so far as you know it, the story of Shakespeare’s
life, making use of the information you collected in the
section on the Use of Reference Books.
3. Say what j''ou think of these ways of speaking :
{a) The paint in this ’ere ’ousc wants renonovating.
{b) How yer goin’ along, old son ? — Arcet ; how’s
ycrself, — Oh, so, so ; mus’n’t grumble, yer
know,
(e) ’E’s gotty zaiids in ’is pockits.
(d) ’E ain't only got ’arf ’orsc, ’ave ’e,
( e ) He’s a man with all sorts of funny little idio-
snocrasies.
4. C*omplete the following coniparis(ms :
(a) Deaf as a . , . .
(h) Clean as a )
(c) Sober as a
(d) Mad as a
(£) Sharp as a
(/) as a rock.
(g) as a bell.
(/i) ... V * • as a doornail,
(t) as a poker.
5. Describe, in your own way, the visit of Washington
Irving to Shakea>peare’s house.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 61
6. Explain the meaning of each of these expressions ;
poetical pilgrimage^ craft of wool-combing, ncstling-place of
genius, spontaneous and universal homage of mankind, a rival
smoker of Sir Walter Ralegh, Shakespeare's ‘tmtlberry-iree,
a ship of the line, the slowly revolving the flying chair of
the Arabian enchanter.
(f) Exercises tx the Appreciation oe Literature
1. In writing of Shakespeare’s birthplace Washington
Irving says : “ It is a small mean-looking edifice of wood
and plaster, a true nestling- place of genius, which seems
to delight in hatching its offspring in by-comers."
Give some examples of great geniuses who have been
bom amidst humble surroundings. Do you think that the
possession of genius depends in any way upon riehes, or
influence, or high bii'th ?
.Washington Irving’s style is noted for its charm, its
grace, its lightness of touch, and its unforced humour. Do
you agree with this opinion ? If so, give some examples.
If not, say why.
3. Suggest some reasons why Shakespe^are is regarded as
one of the greatest writers who have ever lived.
ig) Exercise in Tiiinkino
Mr. Percy Scholes, the well-known music critic, writing in
the Radio Times says :
In life, we have all met somebody by wliose sunny
disposition we w'ere at first attracted, later to thjnk
that disposition shallow ; or somebody else by whose
powerful mind w'e w'ere awed, later to find the power
a sham.
What is your experience ? Give a description of any
such person you have known, carefully explaining how you
gradually came to realise that your friend’s or acquaintance’s
character was not what it seemed to be, and in what respect
it fell short of your expectations.
LESSON NINE
(o) llKAl>JKCi ICXKRCISE
UY Tin: STATUE OF KING CHARLES AT
CHARING CROSS
S<Jin))rc‘ aud riclj, llie skies ;
Great gJooms, and starry plains.
Gently the iiii^ht \viiid sighs ;
Else a vast silence reigns.
The splendid silt^nct^ clings
Around me : and around
'rile saddest ol* all kings
Crowned, and again discrowned.
Comely and calm, he rides
Hard by his own Wliitehall :
Only the niglit wind glides :
No cro\^ds, nor rebels, brawl.
Gone, loo, his Court ; and yet.
The stars his courtiers are :
Stars in their stations set ;
And every wandering star.
Alone he rides, alone.
The fair and fatal king :
Dark night is all liis ow'n.
That strange and solemn thing.
62
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 68
Which are more full of fate :
. The stars ; or those sad eyes ?
Which are more still and great :
^ Those brows ; or the dark skies ?
Although his whole heart yearn
In passionate trag<‘dy :
Never was face so stern
With sweet austt‘rily.
Vanquished in life, his death
By beauty made amends :
Tlie passing of his br(*alh
Won his defeated ends.
Brief life and hapless ? Nay :
Through d<‘ath, life grew sublime.
Speak after sentence ? Yea :
And to the end of time.
Armoured he rides, his head
Bare to the stars of doom :
He triumphs now, the dead,
Beholding London’s gloom.
Our wearier spirit faints.
Vexed in the w^orld’s employ :
His soul was of the saints ;
And art to him was joy.
King, tried in fires of woe I
Men hunger for thy grace :
And through the night I go.
Loving thy mournful face.
64 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Yet when the city sleeps ;
When all the cries are still :
The stars and heavenly deeps
Work out a perfect will.
Lionel Johnson.
(!>) Subjects for Class Study
I
Synthesis.^
It was pointed out in Lesson Four that although it
is generally advisable for you to make your sentences
short rather than long, if you write a series of short
sentences the result will almost certainly be harsh and
unplcasing. You should therefore know how to link
and weave these short sentences into a longer sentence,
or into one or two longer sentences, so as to form a
connected and well-balanced whole.
The process by which this is done is known as
Synthesis, and detached simple sentences can be com-
bined into a longer simple sentence, into a double or
compound sentence, or into a complex sentence.
Here are some examples :
(a) Combine the following into one Simple sentence :
The horses were harnessed — they were driven
to the court — ^His Imperial Majesty ascended his
new English throne — ^he did so solemnly — ^there
was a great flourish of trumpets — he had the
First Lord' of the Treasury on his right hand —
he had the Chief Jester on his left.
Synthesis :
The horses having been harnessed and driven
to the Court, His Imperial Majesty, solemnly and
with a great flourish of trumpets, ascended his
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
65
new English throne, the First Lord of the Treasury
being on his right hand, and tlie Chief Jester
on his left.
(b) Combine the following into a Com^yoiwd sentence,;
in which none of the co-ordinate parts shall be Complex :
You have finished the job before the" time
appointed. You have done it in good style. This
is more than I expected of yon. You have
never before shown so much quickness and energy.
I have seen a great deal of your Avork Jor many
years past.
Synthesis :
You have finish(‘d the job in good style and
before the time appointed, and this is more than
I expected of you ; for I have seen a great deal of
your work for many years past, and you have
never before shown so mueJiuquiekuess and energy.
(c) Condense the following state Tiients into one
sentence, introducing all the facts given :
He is now gone to his final r4^w;&,ril. He was
full of yt ars and honours. These honours were
especially dear to him for the following reasons.
They were gratefully bestowed by his pupils.
They bound him to the interests of that school.
He had been educated at that school. His whole
life had been dedicated to its service.
»
Synthesis :
Full of years and honours — honours which were
especially dear to him, because they were grate-
fully bestowed by his pupils, and bound him to the
interests of the school, where he had been educated,
and to whose service he had dedicated his whole
life — he is now gone to his final reward.
n.— 5
C6 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
II
Conjunctions. ,
You will have seen from the foregoing examples of
synthesis that conjunctions play a very important
part in the linking and weaving of sentences. You
must therefore know a little more about them.
Conjunctions arc of two kinds :
1. Co-ordinating.
2. Subordinating.
A co-ordinating conjunction is one that joins to-
gether two clauses, neither of which is dependent upon
the other ; as hut, and, yet, or, then. In other words,
it is the kind of conjunction used in constructing a
double or compound sentence.
A subordinating conjunction is one that joins a
dependent clause to a principal clause ; as when,
where, because, so, if, though, than. That is, it is used
in constructing a complex sentence.
Subordinating conjunctions introduce either noun-
clauses or adverb-clauses, noun-clauscs being usually
introduced by the conjunction that.
Prepositions.
A Preposition is a word which is used to show the
relation of a noun or pronoun to some other word in
the sentence ; as in, “ The boat is on the river,” where
the preposition on shows the relation in which the
noun “ boat ” stands to the noun “ river.”
The two most important classes of prepositions
are :
1. Simple : as on, in, over.
2. Compound : as upon, without, behind.
There are also Double Prepositions and Preposi-
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 67
tional Phrases ; such as, o%d of, from behind, on
account of
I^Exekcises in the Use of Reference Books
1 . Find in your dictionary the meanings of the following
words : s^bre, discrowned, comeUf, braivl, courtiers, tragedy,
austeri^^ vanquished, hapless, sublime, armoured, vexed.
2^1efer to a history book, an encyelopiedia, or any other
appropriate book of reference, and find out something
about the character of Charles I.
3. Turn to a map of Ijondon, and find the situation of
Charing Cross and Whitehall.
(d) ExiHicrsKs IN Written PiNGLisu
1. Explain the meaning of tlie following expressions :
(а) The saddest of all kings
Crowned, and again discrowned.
(б) Comely and calm, he rides
Hard by his own Wlutehall.
(c) Vanquished in life, his death
By beauty made amends.
(d) Speak after sentence ? Yea :
And to the end of time.
2. Collect from the poem all the details bearing upon
the character of Charles I., as he is there represented, and
then, making use of the information you collected in
Question 2, Section (c), give the other side of the picture.
3. The sentences in the following little story arc 'not
arranged in their right order. Rearrange them so as to
make as coherent and effective a paragraph as possible.
“ Oh,” said the Grasshopper, ” I was not idle.
Said the Ant, laughing and shutting up his granary,
Since you could sing all summer, you may dance aU
winter.” “ I kept singing all the summer long.
‘ On a frosty day an Ant was dragging out some of the
68 A PllOGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
corn whic.h he had laid up in summer-time, to dry it.
“ What were you doing,” said the Ant, “ this last
suniiiKT ? ” A Grasshopper, half-perished with
fhingcT, besought, the Ant to give him a morsel of it
to^rcserv^ his life^
4. Wri^e a pariigra[)h of five or six sentences about
Whib’lwillvoi* Cellaring Cross.
5. Combi i\(*''the folIo)ving short, sentences into one longer
S(‘ntenee o( g(Kj^ia lance and rliythm :
A note eaihe from Mr. Holbrook. This was a few
days after. It asked us to spend a day at his house.
Tlic note was in a for^ial. old-fashit)ned style. Tfie
day w<' were asked to spend was a long June day. It
was now June.
(e) Exeiktses in Spoken English
1. Use each of the words given in Question 1, Section (c),
in a scnLence of your own.
2. Point out all the conjunctions and prepositions in
the first four stanzas of the poem.
3. Give as vivid and detailed a description as you can of
the e^^cution of Charles I.
41%/iivc llie eorriH’.t proiiuneiation of the follow^ing w'ords :
aide-de-camp, en route, coupon, bulletin, compdte. baton,
attache, clique, chic, clairvoyant, camouflage, cafe, blancmange,
denouement, casserole,
5. Point out anything absuril in the following, and
suggest what the‘writer probably had in mind :
(а) The principal thing which was left behind by the
Egyptians was their bones.
(б) Joan of Arc was Noah’s sister.
(c) The streets of London are often pinned down by
lamp- posts.
{d) A grass widow' is the wife of a dead vegetarian.
(e) ShakevSpeare wTote “ The Merry Widow.”
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 69
(jy Exercises tx the Appreciation of Literature
1, Point out, with your reasons, what you consider to
be (a) the most beautiful line, (h) the most beautiful stanza,
in the poem. Study, and eoininent on, the (ufjcctives used,
3 .; 11 you <l(» not a^ro<' with the view lu*re takt'u by Litmel
Johnson of the eharaeler of Charles 1., do you consider tliat
that should make any difference U> your judgment of the
poem as a piece of literature ? Jixplain as fully as possible
what you think on the subject.
3. Compare Lioia l Johnsini’s poem, litj the Statue of King
Charles, w'itli Ix)rd Macaulay's on A Jarohite's Epitaph
(see Lesson Seven), parlJeularly in ixiftard t.o the style in
w'hic^li they are wTitten ami the sen1ime!)ts they express.
Say which of the two you prefer, and why you |)rcfer it,
j^iving quotations .'wherever possible to illustrate what you
mean. /
(^')J
Kxe rci.se in Tiiinkinc;
Say what kind of lUms the following titles suggest ;
(a) The Doctor's Secret.
(/)) I Underground.
(c) Mother’s Jloy.
(ft) The Adventures of Do! lie.
(e) The liLagle's Nest .
(/) l^ay as You Pinter.
(g) Rich, Young, and Beautiful.
(//) Tlie Legion of the Condemned.
(i) Hearts in Dixie.
(j) Tliis is Heaven.
Give a parch/ imaginary account of any one <)f these
films, in accordance with the type which you have said
the title suggests.
LESSON TEN
( a ) Beading Exercise
OWLS AND THEIR HABITS
VTe have had, ever since I can remember, a pair of
white owls that constantly breed under the eaves of
this church. As I have paid good attention to the
manner of life of these birds during their season of
breeding, which lasts the summer through, the follow-
ing remarks may not perhaps be unacceptable : About
an hour before sunset (for then the mice begin to run)
they sally forth in quest of prev . and hunt all round the
hedges of meadows and small enclosures for them,
which seem to be their only food. In this irregular
country we can stand on an eminence and see them
beat the fields over like a setting-dog, and often drop*
down in the grass or corn. I have minuted these
birds with my watch for an hour togethcT, and have
found that they return to their nests, the one or the
other of them, about once in five minutes ; reflecting
at the same time on that adroitness that every animal
is possessed of as regards the well-being of itself and
offspring. But a piece of address, which they show
when they return loaded, should not, I think, be
passed over in silence. — As they take their prey with
their cla\vs, so they carry it in their claws to their
nest : but, as the feet are necessary in their ascent
under the tiles, they constantly perch first on the roof
of the chancel, and shift the mouse from their claws
70
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 71
to their bill, that the feet may be at liberty to take
hold of the plate on the wall as they are rising undt r
the eaves.
White owls seem not (but in Uiis I am not positive)
to hoot at all : all that clamorous hooting appears to
me to come from the woods kinds. The white owl
does indeed snore and hiss in a tremendous manner ;
and these menaces well answ'er the intention of in-
timidating : for I have known a whole village up in
arms on such an occasion, imagining the churcliyard
to be full of goblins and spectres. White owls also
often scream horribly as they fly along ; from this
screaming probably arose the common people’s
imaginary species of screech-owl, which they super-
stitiously think attends the windows of dying persons.
Tile plumage of the remiges of the wings of every
species of owl that I have yet examined is remarkably
soft and pliant* Perhaps it may be necessary that the
wings of these birds should not make much resistance
or rushing, that they may be enabled to steal through
tile air unlieard upon a nimble and watchful quarry.
• While I am talking of owls, it may not be improper
to mention what I w^is told by a gentleman of the
county of Wilts. As they were grubbing a vast hollow
pollard-ash that had been the mansion of owls for
centuries, he discovered at the bottom a mass of matter
that at first he could no^ account for. After some
examination, he found it was a congeries of the bqnes
of mice (and perhaps of birds and bats) that had been
heaping together for ages, being cast up in pellets out
of the crops of many generations of inhabitants. For
owls cast up the bones, fur, and feathers of what they
devour, after the manner of hawks. He believes, he
told me, that there were bushels of this kind of
su*bstance.
72 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
When brown owls hoot, their throats swell as big as
a hen’s egg. I have known an owl of this species livcj
a full year without any Avater. Perha})s the case
may be tlie same willi all birds of prey. When owls
fly, they stretch out their legs beliind them as a balance
to th(‘ir large heavy heads ; for as most nocturnal
birds have large eyes and cars, they must have large
heads to contain them. Largt* eyes, I presume, are
necessary to collect every ray of light, and large
concave cars to command the smallest degree of sound
or nois(‘.
GiTiBKut White ; Natural History of Selbornc,
( h ) Subjects ecu Class Study
Revision.
This is a revision lesson, and tlic following is a
summary of the chief subjects we have so far discussed :
On Learning English.
If you wish to write and to appn'ciate good English,
you must r(‘ad and study the great books of the past
and the present, and incessantly practise. Grammar
is of use, as it helps you to understand the exact meaning
of these books, and also to learn a fonagn language.
But remember that grammar was made for man, and
not man for grammar.
Literary Appreciation.
Lit('rary Aj)prcciation means laterary Judgment,
and wdiat is required is neither lavish praise nor petty
fault-finding,^ but a candid and fearless statement of
your real opinion of a book after you have carefully
considered all that you think can be said both for it
and against it. Literary Appreciation is mainly a
matter of sound personal judgment.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 73
A Few Hints on Spelling.
The best \vi\y to learn how to spell correctly is tc
read as Avidely and carclhll)’ as possible. Spell all
diflicult words aloud, and write them down sev(Tal
times. This will serve to imprc‘ss them on your
memory.
Sentence, Clause, Phrase, etc.
A sentence is a group of words that makes complete
sense, a clause is a sc'utenee which forms part, of a
larger sentence, and a pluase is a group of words that
makes si‘nse u[> to a point, but not com])Icte sense.
Every sentence can be divided into two parts ;
nam(‘]y, subject and predicate, the subject being the
group of words or the single word which denotes the
p(*rson or thing of Avhich sonu'thing is said, and the
y)redicat(! all that is said of the jx^rson or tiling denoted
by the subject.
All the words of a language can be divided into eight
elass(‘s, according to the particular kind of w^^rk they
do in a sc^nlenee. These eight parts of speech, as
they are calk d, are : noun, pronoun, verb, adjective,
adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection.
Nouns and Pronouns.
A Noun is a Avord that names. Nouns are usually
di Added into tAvo classes : Abstract and Concrete,
Concrete Nouns being subdivided into Proper,
Common, and Collective.
A Pronoun is a word used insti‘ad of a noun.
Pronouns are diAuded into four groups : Personal,
Demonstrative, Interrogative, and Relative.
Relative Pronouns can be either defining or non-
defining, Reflexive Pronouns arc those Avhich
imply that the subject acts upon himself, and Em«
74 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
phasising Pronouns arc those which are used merely
to emphasise a noun or its equivalent
Verbs.
A Verb is a word which enables us to say something
about a thir»g. Some verbs do not make complete
sense until a word or a group of words is added. When
we add a word or a group of words that refers to the
same thing as the subject we have what is called the
complement of the verb. Wh(*ri we add a word or a
group of words that refers to a different thing, we
have the object of the verb.
A verb is used either transitively or intransi-
tively. It is used transitively when it exj)resses an
action exercised by the doer upon some object, and
intransitively w'hcn it expresses an action which is
confined to the doer.
The Direct Object of a transitive verb is tlie word
directly affectc'd by its action. The Indirect Object
denotes the person to qt for whom an action is done.
Adjectives and Adverbs.
An Adjective is a word used to limit a noun or its
equivalent, and an Adverb a word used to limit any
other part of speech. — ^Thc chief classes of adjectives
are : Adjectives of Quality, Adjectives of Quantity,
and Pronominal Adjectives; Pronominal Adjectives
being usually divided into : Demonstrative, Inter-
rogative, Possessive, Distributive, Indefinite, and
Relative.
There arc three degrees of comparison : Positive, in
which we use the adjective or adverb without any
comparison ; Comparative, in which we compare two
things together ; and Superlative, in w'hich we
compare more than two.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 7t
Adverbs are formed from Adjectives, from Pronouns,
from Nouns, and by combination. — ^There are two
classes of Adverbs : Simple, whose w^ork it is to modify
the meaning of a word ; and Connective, which in
addition to modifying the meaning of a word, join
clauses together, and are combined adverbs and
conjunctions.
Prepositions and Conjunctions.
There are two classes of Conjunctions ; co-ordinat-
ing, which join together independent clauses, and
subordinating, w'hich join a dependent clause to a
principal clause.
The two most important classes of Prepositions are
Simple and Compound. There are also Double
Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases.
Analysis and Synthesis.
In Analysis wo take a sentence to pieces and in
synthesis we put it together. Wc can analyse a
complex sentence into clauses, and a simple sentence
into its various parts. In Synthesis we can combine
a number of short sentences into a longer simple
sentence, into a double or compound sentence, and
into a complex sentence.
e
The Use of Words.
Write as simply as possible, and avoid long words.
There are usually two distinct sets of w'ords in which
we can express our meaning : long, heavy Latin words,
and short, simple native ones. Choose for the most
part the short native words, and what you write will
be clearer and more forcible.
76 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
The Sentence : its Length.
There are long sentences and shoit, and each has its
place in English composition. But on the whole you
will do well to make ^miir sentencc-s short. Short
scntenecs are neater and inor(‘ easily understood. Take
care, however, not to make your sentences too short,
or the effect will be broken, abriij)t, and nnpJeasing,
The best ])lan is to vary the length of the sentences,
by using some that are short and some that are fairly
Ions.
How to Write a Good Sentence.
A good sentence innst [)ossess Unity, Emphasis, and
Coherence. By Unity we mean that a si titeiiee mnsL
contain only one main faet, by Emphasis that* the
most important words mnst be in Ukj most prominent
position, and by CoIuTcnoe, that all tin* words in a
sentence mnst b(' arranged in tlair }>roj)er order.
Writing a Paragraph.
A Paragrajdi is one section or main division of a
subject. It is best on the whole to make it short,
as short paragrai)hs arc easier to write and more
readily grasped. At the same time, the paragra}ih
should not be too short, as a very sliort paragraidi will
probably be doing the work that ought to be done by a
sentenc*e, and 3^011 will thus confuse the nadcr bj’'
mixing up the main and the subordinate division of the
subject.
The Paragrajih must possess Unity ; that is, it
must deal with only one main theme. This theme
niu}’' be expressed or implied. If expressed it is
usualK^'set forth in wiiat is known as the topic sentence.
Lack oi unity is due to three definite causes : putting
two different topics into one paragraph ; giving two
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 77
separate paragraphs to wliat is only one main division
of the subject ; introducing into the paragraph matters
which have nothing to do with the .subject.
Summarising a Paragraph.
To summarise a paragraph is to give its substance
in a.s few words as possible. The method lo be adopted
will be gatlicred from what has been said of the
construction of the jiaragraph ; namely, first find the
theme or topic sent cnee, then the conclusion, and omit
most of the amplifying or illustrative mattcu’. The*
summary, hovvcv<^r, must be expressed in your own
words.
Exercises in the Use of Refrrfa^ce Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words, as used
in Uie extract : conslonthj^ eaves^ unacceptable^ nalUj, prey^
eminence, adfoihiess, address, perch, chancel, clamorous,
intimidating, snperstitiously, plumage, nimble, quarry^
grubbing, congeries, pellets, bushels, species, uoelurnal,
concave.
2. G)lleet some information about the life and literary
work of Gilbert White.
(d) Exercises in W’^ritten English
1. Add suitable predicates of your own to the following
sub jects :
(a) A pair of white owls
(b) All that clamorous hooting
(c) The common people’s imaginary species of screecli-
owl
(d) Large eyes, I presume,
2. Gilbert Wliite says that the common people super-
stitiously think that the imaginary species of screech-owl
attends the windows of dying persons. Write two para-
78 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
graphs, of not fewer than ten sentences in all, on Popular
Superstitions.”
Point out what is w'eak in each of the following
sentences, and suggest improvements :
(a) An exfierience of this kind is hardly, il^o^ at all,
encountered.
(b) There is such a lot to be spr>ken about, and so little
time to say it in.
(c) He extolled its praises with numerous eulogies of
its climate. ;
(cl) In the case of day boys, however, the case is
different.
(e) It doesn’t scarcely seem a day since last we herded
gregariously together.
(/) Maths, are, in their opinions, on the first day of
the term the w'orst thing that could be set
upon them.
'4. Show wluit are some of the advantages and dis-
advantages of (a) short sentences, (b) long sentences ; and
illustrate your remarks by referring to some of the prose
extracts in the lessons alrcaily done.
<^-5. Give a summary of the second paragraph, using about
/r/li/ words.
(a) Exekcisf.s in Spoken Engijsii
1. Use in sentences of your own making the words given
in Question 1, Section (c).
2. Analyse the following passage into clauses :
;\Ve have liad, ever since I can remember, a pair of
' vVbite owls that constantly breed under the eaves of
this church. As I have paid good attention to the
manner of life of these birds during their season of
breeding, which lasts the summer through, the follolK
ing remarks may not perhaps be unacceptable.
8. Combine the following short sentences into one longer
sentence, using at least some relative pronouns :
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 79
(a) We found the whole weary cavalcade assembled at
the gate. It was the gate which leads into the
grove. This was on our arrival.
{b) I had an opportunity to see this ceremony. I was
pretty sure that the opportunity would never
fall in my way again. I determined to stay.
I also determined to notice something. What
1 determined to notice was all that passed. I
determined to notice this with minute at-
tention.
j 4. Say Mdiat you know nl>out '' owls and their habits,
making use of thci chief facts mentioned in the extract.
|r 5. Give the correct pronunciation of the following words,
.all of which have appeared in the fort^going lessons :
threshold, concurrence, erring, obdurate, Beethoven, Schubert,
Tchaikowski, Bnnqtio, Jagucs, Cleopatra, Geoffrey Chaucer,
William Cowper, Charlotte BronUt, coupon, clique, blanc-
mange.
(f) Exercises in tiik Appreciation of l^rTEUAXURE
^ 1. Give a short account of the life and work of Gilbert
Wliite.
2. What do you consider to be three of the chief merits
of this cixtract ? Deal both with the subject-matter and
the style in which it is written.
8. Explain fully what you think is meant by “ literary
appreciation ” and “ literary criticism.”
(g) Exercises in Thinking
1. Who signs the ten-shilling Bank of England notes ?
What is meant by the Spanish Main ” ?
3. Who was known as “ The Lady with a Lamp ”
80 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
4. What English King was unable to speak
English ?
5. What great event do you associate with the 11th of
November ?
SECTION TWO
LESSON ELEVEN
(<'/) Heading Exercise
MISS THOMPSON VISITS TIIK FISHMONGER
A little further down the way
Stands Miles’s fish shop, whence is shed
So strong a smell of fishes dead
That people of a subtler sense
Hold their breath and hurry thence.
'Miss Thompson hovers there an(i gazes.
Her housewife’s knowing eye appraises
'Salt and fresh, severely cons
Kippers bright as tarnished bronze ;
Great cods disposed upon the sill.
Chilly and wet \vith gaping gill.
Flat head, glazed eye, and mute uncouth.
Shapeless, wan, old-woman’s mouth.
Next, a row of soles and plaice,
With querulous and twisted face.
And red-eyed bloaters, golden-grey ;
Smoked haddocks ranked in neat array ;
A group of smelts that take the light
Like slips of rainbow, pearly bright ;
Silver trout with rosy spots.—*
And coral shrimps with keen black dots
For eyes, and hard and jointed sheath
And crisp tails curving underneath.
II.— 6
82 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
But tlicre upon the sanded floor,
More wonderful in all that store
Than anything on slab or shelf,
Stood Miles the fishmonger himself.
Foursquare he stood and filled the place.
His huge hands and his jolly face
Were red. \/TIe had a mouth to quaff
Pint after pint : a sounding laugh,
But wheezy at the end, and oft
His cy(‘.s bulged outwards and he coughed.
Aproned he stood from chin to toe.
The apron’s vertical long flow
Warped grandly outwards to display
His hale, round belly hung midway,
Whose apex was securely bound
With apron-strings wrapped round and round.
Outside Miss Thompson, small and staid,
Felt, as she always felt, afraid
>(3f this huge man who laughed so loud
^i»d drew the notice of the crowd.
Awhile she paused in timid thought.
Then promptly hurried in and bought
“ Two kippers, please. Yes, lovely weather.”
Two kippers ? Sixpence altogether.”
And in her basket laid the pair f
Wrapped face to face in newspaper. V
Mahtin Armstrong.
(ft) SunjECTs FOR Class Study
I
The Use of Words : Synonyms and Malaprops.
Synonyms,
It is of the greatest importance that you should be
able to express with exactness the thought that you
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 88
have in your mind, and to do this yon must use the
right word in llic right place. This will involve your
studying words with the closest attention, and especially
those groups of words which have a family resemblance,
but differ from one another by a fine shade of meaning.
Take the words practical and practicable, for (‘xamj)l<'.
Practical is opposed to theoretical, and means “that
which can be put to some definite use ” ; and
practicable, “ that which can be readily done.’* A
man, for instance, may engage in practical agriculture,
but some of his ideas for im})roving his crops may
not be practicable. Again, the word incredulous and
incredible are somewhat alike, but incredulous means
unbelieving, and incredible, hard to believe or un-
believable, AVords which have very nearly the same
meaning as other words are known as Synonyms.
Malaprops.
When one synonym is confused vith another, or
when one word is confused with another which it
somewhat resembles, we have what is known as a
Malaprop — a word wdiich takes its name from Mrs.
Malaj)rop, a character in Sheridan’s play. The Rivals,
Mrs. Malaprop, for instance, speaks of some one as
being “ as headstrong as an allegory on the banks of the
Nile,” of a “ progeny of learning,” and of a “ supercilious
knowledge in accounts.” This is one of the dangers
of using long words, as w^e pointed out in Lesson
Five.
Some of the words that you are likely to confuse are :
temporal and temporary, continuous and continual,
efficient and effective, contiguous and contagious, stimulus
and stimulant, stationery and stationary, loose and lose,
social and sociable, veracity and voracity. Hence, very
cafefully study the difference in meaning between^
84 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
these pairs of words, and any others that you may
come upon in your reading.
Of course, the best way to learn how words should
be used is to read good literature, to note all words
that are new to you, and then to practise using these
words by introducing them into somewhat similar
sentences. Another helpful way to increase your
command of words is to read aloud any f)assage fron»
a good book, and, while reading, to substitute, wherever
possible, words equivalent to those in the original.
II
The Noun ; Number.
Some words change th(‘ir form to show a change of
meaning, and this change in the form of the word is
known as Inflection : hool\ hooks ; actress ;
walk, walked, for example.
The change which a Noun undergo(,*s to shovr whether
we are speaking of one thing, or more than one, is
known as Number. — If a noun denotes only one thing
it is said to be in tlie Singular ; if it denot(‘S more
than one, it is said to be in tlu? Plural.
The plural is usually formed by adding s to tJie
singular ; as, chair, chairs ; cart, carts ; microphone,
microphones. But when it is impossible to sound this
s, the plural is formed by adding cs. This is the ease
after s, x, z, ch, and sh : loss, losses ; fox. foxes ; topaz,
topazes; church, churches ; brush, brushes.
Nouns w'hich end in /, when this is preceded by a
Jong vowel (except oo), also add es, the / being changed
to V ; as, wolf, wolves ; thief, thieves ; but roof, roofs.
Nouns which end in y preceded by a consonant
change y to i and add es ; but if the y is preceded by a
vowel, $ only is added ; as, lady, ladies ; army, armies ;
monkey, monkeys ; key, keys.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 85
Nouns which end in o usually form their plural by
addinpr in words which are still re^rardcd as more oi
less foreign, but by adding es in words which are
now regarded as English ; as, canto, cantos ; soprano,
sopranos ; hero^ heroes ; potato, potatoes.
Compound nouns generally form their plural by
pliiralising the most important word ; as, court-
martial, courts-martial ; man-of-war, mcn-of-war. But
some have double plurals ; as, lord- justice, lords-
jn stives ; man-servant, mcn-sen'ants.
A few nouns form their )>lural by adding en ; as, oj;,
oarn ; and a few by changing their vowel ; as, man,
men ; j'oot, feet ; mouse, mice. /
Some nouns are not used in tlie singular ; as, shears,
trousers, xdctuals ; some nouns which are really singular
are used as plurals ; as, caves, alms, riches ; some
plural nouns are usually treated as singular ; as,
means, pains, news, tidings, innings ; some nouns
have the same form in both singular and plural ; as,
sheep, deer, swine ; and some hav'e two plui’al forms
which differ in meaning; as, brothers, brethren; cloths,
clothes; pennies, pen ce^; fish, fishes ; geniuses, genii.
^ (c) Exkucises in the Use of Reference Books
1. Find in your dictionary the meanings of the following
words : subtler, hovers, appraises, cons, tarnished, uncouth,
wan, querulous, smelts, coral, slab, ivheezy, bulged, vertical,
apex, warped, hale, staid, awhile.
2. Ascertain the difl’ej’ence in meaning between the words
in each of these three groups :
(a) Bring, feleh, carry.
(b) Clear, obvious, ajjparent.
(c) Beginner, amateur, novice.
Collect, from an appropriate Reference Book, some
information about Martin Armstrong.
86 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(d) Exercises in Written English
1. Write sentences which show that you know the exact
difference in meaning between the words in any two ol
groups given in Question 2, Section (c).
y 2. The complete poem from .which this extract is taken
IS called, “ Miss Thompson goes Shopping.” — Describe Miss
Thompson’s visit to the Shoe Shop or to the Chemist,
choosing all your words, but especially your adjectives, as
carefully and exactly as possible.
3. Point out anything absurd in the following, and
suggest improvements :
(a) Geometry is the science which teaches us to bisex
* angels. KSt^*
(b) Ttiema^culine of heroine is kipper.
{c) A cSnlffiSf^cur is a man that spinels outside a picture
pamce.
(d) An optimist is a man who looks after your eyes,
and a pessimist is a man who looks after your
{e) A trapezium ns the thinj^you swing about on in
the gyimiasium.
Give a carefully drawn word-portrait of Miss Thompson ,
such as you imagine her to have been.
5. Take down from dictation :
Hie invention of omnibuses is due to the philosopher
Pascal, who, in February 1667, obtained a “ privilege,”
or a patent for public carriages to travel through certain
streets of Paris. They held eight passengers, who paid
six sous each, and were very successful, although an
act of the parliament of Paris forbade their being used
by lackeys, soldiers, and other humble folks. Pascal
died in 1667, and his useful invention did not long
survive him. The omnibus reappeared in London
about the beginning of the nineteenth century, and
was adopted in several French provincial towns before
Paris accepted it again.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 87
{ e ) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use each of the words given in Question 1, Section (c),
in sentences of your own making.
Suggest tlie questions to which the following are the
answ'crs : 1
(a) At TrafalgarTfiTlSOS.
(b) It is usually regarded as Sheridan's most brilliant^
comedy.
(e) The “ White Man’s Grave.”
(d) The period of isolation imposed on an infec^e^
ship that might spread contagious diseases.
(e) Sherlock Holmes.
*3. Give the correct pronunciation of the ToHowing
w'ords : ludicrous^ irascible, tortoise, blizzard, coinage, zeal,
zealous, dotage, zebra, ravine, carcass, Tuesday, pudding,
prior, jmeumouia, victuals.
(IJ’ you do not know the meaning of any of
these words, consult your dictionary.)
% 4, Tell the story of the bravest deed of which you have
ever heard.
* 5. Explain, with examples, the various ways in which
the plural of nouns can lie formed.
(/) Exeucisks in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Write a short criticism or appreciation of ” Miss
Thompson visits the Fishmonger.”
c 2. Give six examples of wimt you regard as very close
and accurate observation on the part of the poet, combined
with the use of the exact word to express his meaiiiiig.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
Mr. J. D. Beresford, the well-known novelist, writing in
the Daily Ejcpress , says :
When I was young, I invented a test for the char-
acter of my new acquaintances. When that inevitable
88 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
pause came in the ctmversation , I would make some
suitable opening and then say : “ Tell me : if it wej-c
possible for you to do one or the other, would you
sooner live for a day in the past or in the future ? ”
Explain clearly liow you think that tliis could form a
test of cjharacter, and say, with some reasons, what your
own choice would l)e.
LESSON TWELVE
( a ) Reading Exercise
ITE FELL AMONG THIEVES
* Ye have robb’d,” said lie, ye have slaughter’d and
made an cud.
Take your ill -got plunder, and bury the dead :
What will ve more of your guest and sometime
fricnd“?”
Blood for our blood,” they said.
He laugh’d : If one may settle the score for five,
I am ready ; but let the reckoning stand till day :
I have loved the sunlight as dearly as any alive.”
“ You shall die at dawn,” said they.
He flung his ernpLy revolver down the sloyic.
He climb’d alone to the Eastward edge of the trees .
All night long in a dream untroubled of hope
He brooded, clasping his knees.
lie did not hear the monotonous roar that fills
The ravine where the Ya^ssin river sullenly flows ;
He did not sec the starlight on the Laspur hills,
Or the far Afghan snow^s.
Hcsaw^^the^^A^jrilnoon^o^^
*TPIie"'msfar5aTtr£unngT17"^^ window wide ;
He heard his father’s voice from the terrace below
• Calling him down to ride.
89
90 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
He saw the grey little church across the park,
The mounds that hid the loved and honour’d dead
The Norman arch, tlu.* chancel softly dark,
The brasses black and red.
He saw’ the School Close, sunny and green,
The runner beside him, the stand by the parapet
wall,
The distant tape, and the crowd, roaring betw’een,
His own name over all.
He saw the dark wxi insect and timber’d roof,
The long tables, and the faceft merry and keen ;
'he College Eight and their trainer dining aloof,
The Dons on th(j dais serene.
He w’atch’d the liner’s stem ploughing the foam.
He felt her trembling speed and the thrash of hei
screw ;
He heard the passengers’ voices talking of home,
He saw the flag she flewr.
And now it was dawn. He rose strong on his feet.
And strode to his ruin’d camp below' the wood ;
He drank the breath of the morning cool and sweet ;
His murderers round him stood.
Light on the Laspur hills was broadening fast,
The blood-red snow-peaks chill’d to a dazzling
white ;
He tuni’d, and saw the golden circle at last,
Cut by the Eastern height.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 91
“ O glorious Life, Who dwellest in earth and sun,
I have lived, I praise and adore Thee.”
A sword swept.
Over the pass the voices one by one
Faded, and the hill slept.
IIkNKY NliWBOLT.
{ b ) Subjects for Ct.ass Study
^ I
.Reproduction of a Story -Poem.
^ You have already had some practice in Repro-
duction, but this has been confined, for the most part,
to reproducing a story written in prose. To reproduce
a story written in verse is rather more difficult ; for
the story is usually told in a more casual and round-
about fashion, and the incidents often require to be
rearranged in a more logical order. The language
of the story-poem is another difficulty, as this nearly
always differs considerably from the language of prose.
The best plan is to study the poem with the closest
attention until you feel that you have thoroughly
grasped its meaning, then to make a note of th^main
facts it contains, to rearrange these facts in what you
consider to be the best order, and to write up your
version from the outline you have thus made.
You will understand, therefore, that W'hat is required
is not a summary, in which the bare substance^f the
poem is given, or a paraphrase, in which an eqmvalent
must be found for every phrase and sentence in the
original, but a full-length version expressed entirely
in the language of prose.
J)ivide your reproduction into paragraphs, con-
struct your sentences as carefully as possible, and pay
92 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
particular attention to punctuation and the correct
use of words.
Sir Henry Newbolt’s splendid poem, “ He Fell Among
Thieves,” is a dramatic story told with beauty, force,
and realism, and should lend itself admirably to
purposes of jjrose reproduction.
II
Punctuation (i).
Punctuation is the use in the written language of
certain marks or signs called .stops. In spoken English
we make onr meaning clear by certain time-pauses.
In writ ! (‘11 English these time-pauses arc represented
by stops. The chief aim of punctuation is cle arness :
it shows how the words in a sentence should be grouped
together so that its moaning may be readily understood.
Kinds of Stops.
The principal stops used in English are ;
1. The Full Stop (.).
2. The Colon (:).
3. The Semicolon (;).
4. The Comma (,).
5. The Question Mark (?).
6. The Exclamation Mark (!).
7. The Dash (— ).
8. Quotation Marks (“ ”) or {‘ ’).
9. The Apostrophe (’).
10. The Hyphen (-).
11. Braek('ts ( ).
The Full Stop is used :
1. At the end of every complete sentence, unless that
sentence is an exclamation or a question ; as, “ I hay^
loved the sunlight as dearly as any alive.”
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 98
2. After abbreviatioTiR ; as, MS., M.A., Le., Bart.,
A.D. (But when the last letter of the abbreviation is
the same as the last hotter of the complete word the
use of the full stop is optional ; ks, Dr Smith, Mrs
Brown, Messrs Green & Co.).
The Colon is used :
1. Between two clauses, the second of which illus-
trates, or adds something to, the first ; as, “ Let the
reckoning stand till day : I have loved the sunlight
as dearly as any alive.”
2. To introduce a list, or an enumeration of details ;
as, “ The four main stops are : the full stop, the colon,
the semicolon, and the comma.”
3. To introduce a direct statement or a direct
question ; as, Clerk at Lambeth to complainant :
Have you any further witness to call ? Complainant :
Only this ’ere poker.”
The Semicolon is used :
1. mark off sentences joined by conjunctions,
such ns so, then, yet, otherwise, which express opposition
or contrast ; as, “ Come at once ; otherwise you will
be too late.”
2. To separate two co-ordinate clauses, when those
clauses contain parts of their own marked off by
commas ; as, “ He will, I am convinced, be proyed
wholly innocent ; but, having regard to all the circum-.
stances, jmu were no doubt justified in your suspicions.”
3. To lay stress upon a scries of subordinate clauses
dependent upon the same principal clause ; as, “ This
at all events I know : that he came here on Thursday ;
that he borrowed the car ; that he went to Oxford ;
alid that he has not been seen since.”
94 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
The Comma is used :
1. To mark off a series of words, or groups of words^
not joined by conjunctions ; as, “ Marlowe’s best
known plays are Dr, Faustus^ Tamburlaine, The Jew
^of Malta^ and Edward 11,^* ^
2. To mark off words that could be omitted from ar*
sentence without altering its sense ; as, “ All this
conversation, however, was only preparatory to
another scheme.”
3. To mark off two sentences of equal importance
joined by conjunctions, unless these sentences arc
very short ; as, “ llis waistcoat was of gosling green,
and his sisters had tied his hair with a broad black
riband.”
4. To indicate the omission of some necessary word
or words ; as, “ lie is a simpleton ; and you, a rogue.”
5. To mark off a non-defining relati^'e clause ; as,
“ Captain Fraser, who arrived yesterday, will be in.
charge of the operations.”
6. To mark off adverb-clauses ; as, ‘‘ If it is really
true, he deserves no consideration.”
7. To mark off a series of noun-clauses or adjective-
clauses, except the first ; as, “ Tell us wdien they said
it, where they said it, and wdiy they said it.”
8. To mark off a short diri'ct quotation ; as, “ To
this ho emphatically answered, ^ Yes.’ ”
. (c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words, as used
in the poem : plunder, sometime, score, reckoning, brooded,
monotonous, ravine, sullenly, aglow, wistaria, chancel. Close,
parapet, wainscot, Dons, dais, serene, thrash.
2. Where are the Yassin river and the Laspur hills?
Refer to your atlas and find the exact position of each:
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE .#5
-1^8. Turn to an encyclopjcdia, or any other suitable
Reference Book, and collect some information about Sir
Isaac Newton, Thomas Guinsl3orough, and Captain Oates.
(d) Exercises in Written English
^1. Explain the following expressions : ilUgot plunder^
sometime friend, let the reckoning stand till day, in a dreajn
untroubled of hope, the distant tape, his own name over all,
the College Eight, he rose strong on his feet, his murderers
round him stood, light on the Laspur hills was broadening fast,
S 2. Tull in your own words the story of this poem, making
your account as effective and dramatic as you can.
3. Write a paragraph of not fewer than eight sentences
(?n Sir Isaac Newton, Thomas Gainsborough, or Captain
Oates, making use of the information you were told to
collect. Use a topic sentence, and show how you have
observed the principle of Unity.
^ 4. Complete in your own words the following incomplete
sentences :
(a) If one may settle
(b) He climbed alone to the
(c) All night long
(d) He did not see
(c) Over the pass
6. Take down from dictation and punctuate the following
passage :
It is strange that the use of points for purposes of
punctuation should be such a comparatively modem
invention. Of the four generally-used points only the
period (.) dates from earlier than the fifteenth century.
The colon (:) is said to have been first introduced about
1485, the comma (,) some thirty-five years later, and
the semicolon (;) about 1570. It is difficult to under-
stand how the literary world dispensed for so many
centuries with these useful points, and their lack must
« have added to the toil of the decipherer of written
documents. When we remember what curious in-
QO- A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
versions of meaning nuiy he caused by the misplacing*
of a comma, we marvel how early authors contrived to
escape strange misreadings of their works, in which
no points guided the students.
(r) Exercises in Spoken English •
Use, in sentences of your own making, each of the
words given in Question 1, Section (c).
% 2. In lie Fell among Thieves we obviously have only the
final scene of a tragic and grim little drama of the East.
Tell as fully as you can the story of the incidents M'hich
you think led up to this final scene.
% 3. What can you gather from the poem of the education,
social position, and character of the man who “ fell among
tluevcs ” ?
^ 4. Give the correct pronunciation of the following words :
isosceles^ diocese^ enlogiwnf microphone, hangar, chauffeur,
garage, gadget, heliotrope, obelisk.
Tell ill your own wa 5 ’’ the fable of The Fox without a
( f ) Exekcises in the Appreciation of Literature
•1. What is meant by a ‘'story-poem ” ? Do you think
that a story is more effective when told in verse or in prose ?
Give some reasons. '
2. At what point would you say that the poem reaches its
highest pitch of interest ? Which do you consider to be
the most dramatic line ? Explain why.
3. You will observe that the events of this poem are not
told us in order of time, but that the poet after introducing
us to a certain tragic crisis in the present, goes back and
narrates some of the chief landmarks in the past life of the
doomed man. Say what you think is the object of this,
and whether you consider that the poem gains or loses by
the adoption of such a method.
A PHOGllESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 97
(g) I^XERcisE IN Thinking
Carefully study the foUowing, and tlien use your common
scMisc to explain tlie meaning of eac/t item :
TRADING ACCOUNT
for the year ending 81st December 1921)
£ £
To Stock at 1st Jan. . 3,000 By Sales . . . 20,000
,, Purclr.iscs . . . 14,000 „ Stock at 31st
Dec. . . . 2,000
,, Gross Profit . . 5,(K)0
£ 22,000 £ 22,000
n.— 7
LESSON THIRTEEN
( a ) Reading Exercise
A LITTLE WAIF
In this house, and with this family (the Micawbers),
I passed rny leisure time. My own exclusive breakfast
of a penny loaf and a pennyworth of milk, I provided
myself : I kept another small loaf, and a modicum of
cheese, on a particular shelf of a particular cupboard,
to make my supper on when I came back at night.
This made a hole in the six or seven shillings, I know
well ; and I was out at the warehouse all day, and
had to support myself on that money all the week.
From Monday morning until Saturday night, I had
no advice, no counsel, no encouragement, no con-
solation, no assistance, no support, of any kind, from
any one, that I can call to mind, as I hope to go to
heaven !
I was so young and childish, and so little qualified —
how could I be otherwise ? — to undertake the whole
charge of my own existence, that often, in going to
Murdstone and Grinby’s, of a morning, I could not
resist the stale pastry put out for sale at half-price at
the pastrycooks’ doors, and spent in that the money
I should have kept for my dinner. Then, I went
without my dinner, or bought a roll or a slice of
pudding. I remember two pudding shops, between
which I was divided, according to my finances. One
was in a court close to St. Martin’s Church — ^at the
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 99
back of the church — which is now removed altogether.
The pudding at that shop was made of currants, and
Avas rather a special pudding, but was dear, two penny-
worth not being larger than a pennyworth of more
ordinary pudding. A good shop for the latter was in
the Strand — somewhere in that part which has been
rebuilt since. It was a stout pale pudding, heavy and
flabby, and with great flat raisins in it, stuck in whole,
at wide distances apart. It came up hot at about my
time every day, and many a day did I dine off it.
When I dined regularly and handsomely, I had a
saveloy and a peiiny loaf, or a fourpenny plate of red
beef from a cook’s shop ; or a })laie of bread and
cheese and a glass of beer, from a miserable old public-
house opposite our place of business, called the Lion,
or the Lion and something else tlnit I have forgotten.
Once, I remember carrying my ow^n bread (which I
liad brought from home in the morning) under my
arm, wrapped in a j)iecc of paper, like a book, and
going to a famous d-la-mode bccf-liouse near Drury
Lane, and ordering a “ small plate ” of that delicacy
to cat with it. What the waiter thought of sucK a
strange little apparition coming in all alone, I don’t
know ; but I can sec him now, staring at me as I ate
my dinner, and bringing up the other waiter to look.
I gave him a halfpenny for himself, and I wish he
hadn’t taken it.
We had half an hour, I think, for tea. When I. had
money enough, I used to get half a pint of ready-made
coffee and a slice of bread and butter. When I had
none, I used to look at a yemson-shop in Fleet Street ;
or I have strolled, at such a time, as far as Covent
Garden Market, and stared at the pineapples. I was
fond of wandering about the Adelphi, because it was a
mysterious place, with those dar}^ arches. I see myself
100 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
emerging one evening from some of these arches, on a
little public-house close to the river, with an open
space before* it, wh(*re some coal-heavers were dancing ;
to look at wliom I sat down upon a bench. I wonder
what they tliouglit of me 1
I was such a child, and so little, that frequently
when 1 went into the bar of a strange public-house
for a glass of ale or ]^ortcr, to moisten what I had had
for dinner, they were afraid to give it me. I remembe r
OIK? hot evening I went into the bar of a public-house,
and said to the landlord :
“ What is your best —your very befit — ale a glass ? ”
For it w’as a special occasion. I don't know what. It
may have been my birthday.
“ Twopencc-halfperuiy,’^ says the landlord, “ is the
price of the Genuine Stunning ale.”
“ Then,” says I, producing the money, just draw
me a glass of the Genuine Shinning, if yon please, with
a good head to it.”
The landlord looked at me in return over the bar,
from head to foot, with a strange smile on his face ;
and instead ot drawing the beer, looked round the
screen and said something to his wife. She came out
from behind it, with her work in her hand, and joiiietl
him in surveying me. Here we stand, all three, before
me now\ The landlord in his shirt-sleeves, leaning
against the bar window' frame ; his wife looking over
the little half-door ; and I, in some confusion, looking
up at them from outside the partition. They asked
me a good many questions ; as. what my name was,
how old 1 was, where I lived, how I was employed,
and how I came there. To all of which, that I might
commit nobody, I invented, I am afraid, appropriate
answers. They served me w'ith the ,ale, though . I
suspect it was not the Genuine Stunning : and the
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 101
landlord’s wife, opcuinc: the little half-door of the bar,
and bending down, gave me my money back, and gave
me a kiss that was half admiring, and half eoin-
passiouate, but all womanly and good, I am sure. 4^"'"
CiiAHLEs Du-ken’s : David Coppcrjicld,
{b) Subjects for Ci^ss Study
1
Narrative Composition.
The simplest kind of narrntive composition ronsists
in telling a short and easy story, such as a fable or an
anecdote, or in relating some little incident that we
ourselves liave set'll.
From this we pass to narrative work of a more
dilficult kind, sometimes called Com]ioimd Narrative,
in which wc tell the story of a person’s life, or give an
account of a period of liistory, or some olher series of
events.
Here your chief difTieiilty will be that of gatJicring
together the material you intend to draw upon, and
selecting just those jiarts whieh will exhibit 3"our
subject to the greatest advantage. You have by now
had a good deal of practice in the use of relcTcnce
books, and that should h(‘lp you very considerabl\' in
this preliminary work. When 3-011 have decided what
are the main points with which 3-0U intend to deal,
draw^ up an outline in whieh tliese points are arranged
in the most clear and effective order.
In narrative composition you will usuall3- be dealing
with a sequence of events, and the best order to adopt
will therefore be the order in which the events hap-
pejc^ed. Occasionally, however, it may be advisable
to vary this order.
102 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
The opeiiini^ and the closing sentences of the narra-
tive arc the most important — ^the opening sentence
because upon this will depend your success in inducing
your readers to read on, and the closing sentence
because there they must be left pleased, satisfied, and
convinced.
Introduce some dialogue, where practicable, as this
will give added interest and variety to the narrative.
You will usually tell your story in the third person,
but sometimes you may find it possible to tell it in the
first, and when you can, do so, as this will have the
effect of making it more vivid and lifelike.
Lastly, bear in mind that throughout your narrative
you are dealing with one main subject, and that every
sentence and every paragraph, every word, we might
almost say, must contribute to a definite unity of
impression. Tliesc effects can be studied in the extract
given.
II
Punctuation (ii).
In the last lesson we discussed the use of the four
main stops — the full stop, the colon, the semicolon,
and the comma. In this lesson we shall tell you
something about the remainder of the stops.
The Question Mark is used :
1. At the end of a direct question ; as, “ Who wrote
King Lear ? ”
2. After each separate question in a series of
questions ; as, “ What was it ? Whence did it come ?
And where did it go ? ”
8. After a sentence that is a statement in form
but a question in meaning ; as, “ You are yx,
Pickwick ? ”
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 108
The Exclamation Mark is used :
1. After interjections ; as, “ Alas ! iny pool
brother.”
2. After words of address, precedt^d by O ; as,
“■ O Death ! where is thy sting ? *’
8. After exclamatory phrases and sentences ; as,
“ To think that it should come to this ! ”
The Dash is used :
1. To mark an abrupt turn or sudden break in a
sentence ; as, “ Let me explain the — but wait a
moment.”
2. To emphasise a particular word ; as, “ That is
exactly what I might expect from — ^>’^ 011 .”
3. To denote agitated or faltering speecli ; as.
Yes ; of course — cr — I agree — that is — er — I agree
up to a point.”
4. Instead of brackets, to ins(‘rt a parenthesis (that
is, some words that are not really necessary to the
grammatical structure of the sentence) ; as, “ I was so
young and childish, and so little qualified — how could
I be otherwise ? — to undertake the whole charge of
my own existence.”
Quotation Marks are used :
1. To denote that the actual words of a speaker 'are
being used ; as, “ ‘ Then, I went without my dinner,’ he
said, ‘ or bought a roll or a slice of pudding.’ ”
2. In the titles of books, plays, etc., as an alternative
to italics ; as, ” One of Byron’s best known poems is
‘ Childe Harold,’ written while he was still in his
twenties.”
104 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
8. To indicate a quotation ; as, “ Po[)e said : ‘ Fools
rush in wIktc an^i^cls fear to tread.’ ”
(It will be observed that in the examples given above,
both double and single quotalion marks appear. Single
quotation marks are used to indicate a quotation within
a quotation.)
The Apostrophe is used :
1. 'to indicate the omission of some letter or letters
from a word ; as, “ I can't think what he’s doing.”
2. In the plurals of such words as the following ;
“ How many 9*s are there in 81 ? ” “ There were
three R.A.’s and two M.A.’s on the staff.”
8. To indicate the genitive or possessive case ; as,
“ One was in a court close to St. Martin’s Church.”
The Hyphen is used :
1. To form com})ounds ; as, “ Railway-engine,
motor-car, son-in-law.'’
2. To divide words into syllables ; as, “ Ware-house,
Mon-day, ad-viee.”
Brackets are used to insert a parenthesis ; as, In
this house*, and with this family (the Mieawbers) I
passed my leisure time.”
Capital Letters are used to indicate :
1. The lirst letter of a sentence ; as, “ It may have-
been my birthday.”
2. The Pronoun I and the Interjection O.
3. The first letter of every line of verse ; as,
“Grow old along with me!
The best is yet to be.”
4. Titles, Proper Names, and Proper Adjectiv'es
as, “ George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, was ap
English nobleman w^ho lived in the reign of Charles I.^'
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 105
5. The names of the days of the week and the months
of the year ; as, “ Saturday, the 15th Marcli.”
6. Nouns and Pronouns referring to God ; as, “ Tlie
Lord is my shepherd, and in Him will I put my trust.”
ExERCISKS IX THE UsE OF REFERENCE BoOKS
1. Find in your dieticjnary the inciinings of the following
words : modicum, rvffrehnuste, counsel, consolation, finances,
flabby, saveloy, delicacy, apparition, venison, surveying,
partition, commit, appropriate, compassionate,
2. Turn to a map of London and iinrl the following places
mentioned in the extract ; St. Martin's Church, the Strand,
Drury Lane, Fleet Street, Covent Garden Market, the Adelphi.
3. In wiiat kind of Hcfcrcncii Book would you expect to
find a summary of the plot of David Coppcrficld ? Refer to
this book, and learn the summary.
(d) Exercises in Written hiNOusii
1, Write sentences which show that you know the exact
^difference in meaning between the w^ords in each of the
following groups ;
(a) Person, man, gentleman.
(b) Alter, exchange, modify.
(c) Practical, possible, practicable.
\ 2. Taking this extract as your model, give an account of
your owm early childhood, especially mentioning those
particulars in which you think that it differed from the
childhood of other children. '
^3. Write two carefully constructed paragraphs (con-
taining about a dozen sentences in all) giving an outline of
th| plot of David Copperfleld.
•nA*. ^lake a summary of the passage beginning, “ 1 re-
jnemlier one hot evening,” and ending, “ all womanly and
good, I am sure,” using not more than eighty words.
l(|f A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
down from dictation and punctuate the follow*
Some German scientists, seeking to discover the
secret of the boomerang’s curious flight, caused a party
of Australian natives to give an exhibition of boomerang
throwing at Munster. The instruments used were of
two sizes, the larger being a slender crescent about ^
two feet long, two and a quarter inches wide, and a
quarter of an inch thick, made of an extraordinarily
heavy Australian iron wood. This boomerang was
jerked up into the air about 100 yards, when it flew
straight away, then turned to the left and returned in
a curved line back to the thrower, wliirling around
constantly and whizzing unpleasantly. One badly
directed projectile fell through a spectator’s hat with a
cut as clean as that of a razor.
(e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use, in sentences of your own making, each of the
words given in Question 1, Section (c).
2. Each of the following words has an interesting
derivation : dunce, brougham, cambric, champagne, guinea,
boycott, macadam, sandwich, gipsy, atlas, hansom, mackintosh.
Say what this derivation is, and give some other words
formed on the same model.
3. Relate, in your own words, the story told in this
extract from David Copperjield.
. 4. Give the correct proiumciation of these words : singer,^
finger, white, wide, hospital, hotel, physic, physique. Psyche,
laboratory, rouge, douche, circular, burglar.
5. Say what conclusions you can draw from the following
^ circumstances ;
(а) The clerks at a certain offlee nominally stop work
at five. On the first stroke of the hour they
all stream out of the building.
(б) You knock at the door of a house in which thejcf
are some furnished apartments to let, and befoie
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 107
the door is opened, you hear a whispered and
agitated conversation going on.
(c) You lend the garden-roller to your next-door
neighbour, and he keeps it three weeks before
returning it.
(d) An acquaintance calls at your house, and after
his departure you find tliat he has taken your
new umbrella and left his old one.
(c) You have a rich aunt from whom you have great
expectations. She dies and leaves you her
favourite parrot.
(/) Exerciser in the ArntECTATioN of Literature
M 1. In what way are the events related in this extract
connected with Dickens’s early life ?
2. Dickens is noted for being one of the great English
humorous writers. But sometimes his humour is of the
kind which is very close to tears. Give some examples of
this from the extract,
( g ) Exercise in Thinking
What is meant by Insurance ? — Explain as carefully
as you can the various advantages that insurance offers,
giving definite examples of the risks run by those who do
not insure.
LESSON FOURTEEN
(^/) Rkading Exercise
THli: LISTENERS
“ Is there anybody there ? snid the Traveller,
Knocking on the moonlit door ;
And his horse in the sil<‘nec cliiiinped the grasses
Of the foriist’s ferny lloor : ^
And a bird flew up out of the ti^rret,
Above the Traveller’s head :
And he smote upon the door again a second time ;
“ Is there anjdjody then? ? ” he said.
Rut no one descended to the Traveller ;
No head from the leaf-fringed sill
Leaned ov^cr and looked into his grey eyes,
Where he stood perph^xed and still.
Rut only a host of phantom listeners
That dwelt in the lone house then
Stood listening in the quiet of the moonlight
To that vbice from the world of men :
.Stood thronging the faint moonbeams on the dark
" stair,
That goes down to the empty hall,
Hearkening in an air stirred and shaken
By the lonely Traveller’s call.
And he felt in his heart their strangeness,
Their stillness answering his cry.
While his liorse moved, cropping the dark turf,
, ’Neath the starred and leafy sky ;
xo8
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 109
For he suddenly smote on the door, even
Louder, and lifted his head ; —
“ Xell them I came, and no one answered.
That I kept my word,” lie said.
Never the least stir made the listeners,
Thoufjh every word he spake
Fell echoing through the shadowiness of the still
house
From the one man left awakt‘ :
Ay, they heard his foot upon the stirrup,
And the sound of iron on stone,
And how the silence surged softly backward,
When the plunging hoofs were gone.
Waltkii de nA Mare.
(6) Subjects for Class Study
I
The Use of Words : Avoid Slang.
Another fault we must be on our guard against in
written composition is slang ; that is, the use of words
and phrases that are tolerated in familiar conversation
but are not accepted as good English ; such expressions
as cheerio^ old thing, got the wind up, topping, nothing
doing, and swank, for instance.
Some slang phrases are undeniably vigorous and
expressive, and add a pleasing naturalness to conversa-
tion, where they are more or less in place ; but in written
English it is usually advisable to avoid them. The
reason for this is that slang is apt t0 be overdone, and
the same threadbare word used in and out of season
without the slightest regard to its real meaning.
,,Sometimes, indeed, excellent English words arc so
misli^dled in this way that it ultimately becomes
110 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
impossible to use them : the words awful and bloomings
for example.
It must not, however, be forgotten that many words
which were at one time regarded as slang have now'
become an accepted part of good English : ^hus and
cab, for instance ; so that slang may play an important
part in enriching the vocabulary of a language.
11
The Noun : Gender.
Gender is the grammatical classification of objects
according to their sex. There arc four genders :
Masculine — the namtis of males ; Feminine — ^the
names of ft'males ; Common — names w'hich denote
cither male or female ; Neuter — names of inanimate
objects.
There are three ways of showing the gender of
nouns ; by the use of a siilfix ; by change of word ;
by use of compound words, one of which denotes the
gender.
Formation by Use of Suffix :
Actor
actress
Master
mistress
Duke
duchess
Negro
n egress
Executor
executrix
Prince
princess
Hero
heroine
Shepherd
shepherdess
Marquis
marchioness
Testator
testatrix
r>rmation by Change of Word.
Bachelor
spinster
Drake
duck
Boar
sow
Earl
countess
Buck
doe
Friar
nun
Bullock
heifer
Gander
goose
Colt
filly
Hart
roe
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 111
Formation by Use of Compound Words.
Bridegroom bride
Grandfather grandmother
He-goat she-goat
Landlord landlady
Man-servant maid-servant
Feminine Nouns without Masculine.
Some feminine non ns have no masculine : blonde^
dowageVy dowdy, prude, shrew, termagafit, vixen, for
example.
Nouns that denote either Sex.
When the question of sex is not emphasised, some
masculine nouns, and some feminine, can be used to
denote either sex ; as, dog, horse, duck, goose.
(c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1, Look up the meanings of the follo'wing words ;
champed, ferny, turret, perplexed, host, phantom, lone,
thronging, hearkining, cropping, stirrup, surged, plunging,
smote.
2. Suppose you wished to make *a week’s visit to Paris ;
say exactly how you would get there, mentioning in detail
the various kinds of Reference Books you have consulted,
and the information you have derived from each.
(d) Exercises in Written English
1. Write sentences which clearly show the difference in
meaning between the words in each of the following groups :
(a) Annoy, aggravate, provoke.
(b) Learn, teach, demonstrate.
(c) Occur, transpire, happen.
2. Take down from dictation and punctuate the foUowing
passage :
112 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
The old Teutonic and Saxon term, “ God’s Acre,”
as applied to the last resting-place of the human body,
Longfellow made the theme of one of his most touching
and beautiful poems ; it is an eminently suggestive
term. The acre or field of God contains the seed
hidden in the ground for a while, to ripen into a
glorious harvest ; and, just as we write tl^e labels in
the spring-time for seed we put in the ground, that we
may remember what beautiful flower is to spring
from the little grey atom, so we put a stone at the
head of the grave of our dead.
3. Point out what words are used incorrectly in each of
the following sentences, and say what the riglit word
should be :
(a) The death of Julius Csesar was foretold by a
shower of metaphors. * ^
(b) William the Coiujueror was the first 'bf t^e Mogj o^ns.^
conjunction is a place whci*e two railway mies
I'meet.
(d) The Menai Straits are crossed by a ^bercular
bridge. , .
(e) The Pope called Henry VIII. “ Fido, the Offensive.’*
4. In Tbe Listeners the Traveller says
•• Tell them I came, and no one answered, -
That I kept my word.”
Make up a little story, explaining for what purpose the
Traveller had come, whom he had expected to see, and
why no one answered his lonely call.
5. Write a paragrai^h of about eight or nine sentences
on “ June Flowers.”
(e) Exekcises in Spoken English
1. Use each of the words given in Question 1, Section (c),
in sentences of your own making.
V 2. Reproduce in your own words the story told in the
poem.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE tll3
S. Give the correct pronunciation of the following names
of well-known English writers : Laurence Binyort, Alfred
Noyee, Bupert Brooke, John Masefield^ Henry Netvbolt,
Walter de la Mare, Edmund Blunden, John Galsworthy,
liudyard Kipling^ Somerset Maugham, Hilaire Belloc,
Maurice Hetvlett, Robert Lynd, Max Beerbohm.
4. Use each of the following expressions in sentenc>t*s
of your own : out of the turret, perplexed and still, phantom
listeners, that voice from the world of men, the lonely Traveller's
call, answering his cry, lifted his head, surged softly backwards,
the plunging hoofs,
5. Point out the slang expressions used in each of the
following, and suggest substitutes which are good English :
(а) Well, cheerio, old bean ; see you Sunday.
(б) Just visited tJie local flower show here, but it's
nothing to write home about.
(c) A big plate of tripe’s my cry : it do go down nice.
(d) He’s scatty, that’s what it is — got bats in the
belfry.
(e) That’s fair put the lid on it.
(/) Go on, ’op it ; or I’ll knock your block off.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. What is meant by the “ atmosphere ” of a poem or a
piece of prose ? Do you think that The Listeners has a
definite and distinguishable atmosphere ? If so, say what
kind of atmosphere it is, and by what means Walter de la
Mare has succeeded in creating it.
2. Carefully study the following sentences :
(а) White clothes swayed idly in the inky gloom. ,
(б) Clean washing stirred slowiy in the foggy gloom.
(c) White washing waved slowly in the smutty gloom.
(d) Clean clothes moved stiflly in the sooty gloom.
(e) WTiite washing hung idly in the impenetrable gloom.
One of these sentences was written by Mr. Arnold Bennett
^^nd every word chosen is the right word. Say, with your
reasons, which sentence you think this is.
II.— —8
114 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(g) Exercise in Thinking
A great deal of the information and knowledge wc
acquire depends upon close and accurate observation. But
it is found tl^at very few people observe accurately. In
proof of tt^s, Mr. Walter Lippmann quotes the following in
Public Opinion :
At a Psychology Congress held at Gdttingen a
clown suddenly burst into the ('ongress hall closely
pursued by a negro. The negro caught him, leapt
upon him, and bore him to the floor, where a fight
ensued, which was ended by a pistol shot, after which
the clown got up and rushed out of the room, still
(jloscly pursued by the negro. The whole scene, which
liad been carefully rehearsed and photographed in
ad vance , took less than twenty seconds . The President
then informed the Congress that judicial proceedings
might have to be taken, and asked each member to
witc a report, stating exactly what had occurred.
Forty reports were sent in. Of these, one only
contained less than twenty per cent, of mistakes in
regard to the principal facts ; fourteen contained from
twenty per cent, to forty per cent, mistakes ; thirteen
contained more than fifty per cent, mistakes. In
twenty-four, ten per cent, of the details recorded were
pure inventions. In short, ten of the accounts were
quite false, ranking as myths or legends, twenty-four
were half legendary, and six only w'ere even approxi-
mately exact.
It is suggested that, in order to test the pupils’ powers
of observation, some simple incident should be rehearsed
by two or three of the pupils, and the rest of the class
invited to witness the incident, and then write a detailed
account of exactly what they think took place.
LESSON FIFTEEN
(a) Reading Exercise
ANNE BOI.EYN
On the morning of I hr 31st of Ma\% the families ol
the London citizens were stirring early in all houses.
From Temple Bar to the Tower, the streets were fresh
strewed with gravel, the footpaths were
along the whole distance, and occupied on one side by
the guilds, tlicir workmen, and apj)rentiees ; on the
other, by the city constables and oflicials in their gaprly.
uniforms, with their staves in hand for to cause the
people to keep good room and order/’ Corn hi 11 and
Graccchurch Street had dressed their fronts in scarlet
and crimson, i n arras and tapestry, and the rieh carpet-
work from Persia and the fiasL Clicapside, to outshine
her rivals, w'as draped even more splendidly in cloth of
gold, and tissue, and velvet. The sheriffs were pacing
up and down on their great Flemish horses, hung with
liveries, and all the windows were thronged with ladies
crow'ding to see the procession pass. At length the
Tower guns opened, the grim gates rolled back, and
under the archway in the bright May sunshine the long
column began slowly to defile. - Two states only per-
mitted their representatives to grace the scene with
their presence — Venice and France. It w^as, perhaps,
to make the most of this isolated countenance, that
.the French ambassador’s train formed the van of the
cavalcade. Twelve French knights came riding fore-
115
116 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURwSE
most in snrcoats of blue velvet with sleeves of yellow
silk, their horses trapped in blue, with while crosses
powdered on their hnit^ings. After them followed a
troop of Eiifjlish j^cntlenien, t-wo and two, and then
the Kni^^hts of tlie Bath, “ in "o^viis of violet, with
hoods purflc'd with miniver like doctors.” Next,
perhaps at a little interval, the abbots passed on, mitred
in their robes ; the barons followed in crimson velvet,
the bisbojis then, and then the carls and marquises,
the dresses of <‘aeh ordtT increasing in elaborate
gorgeoiisness. All these rode on in pairs. Then came
alone Aiidcley, lord chancellor, and behind him the
Venetian ambassador and the Archbishop of York ;
the Archbishop of Cante rbury, and Du Bellay, Bishop
of Bayonne and of Paris, not now with bugle and
hunting-frock, but solemn with stole" and crozier.
Next, the lord mayor, with the city mace in hand, the
Garter in his coat o(j^arms ; and then Lord William
Howard — Belted Will Howard, of the Scottish Border,
Marshal of England. The K^iccrs of the queen’s
household succeeded the marshal in scarlet and gold,
and the van of the procession was closed by the Duke of
Suffolk, as liigh constable, with his silver w’and. It is
no easy matter to pieUire to ourselves the blazing
trail of splendour wdiich in such a pageant must have
drawn a Jong the London streets — ^those streets which
now we know so black and smoke-grimed, themselves
th('n radiant, with masses of colour, gold, and crimson,
and violet. Yet tJienfc it was, and there the sun could
shine upon it, and tenf of thousands of eyes w’crc gazing
on the scene out of the crowded lattices.
Glorious as the spectacle was, perhaps, how^ever, it
passed unheeded. Those eyes were watching all for
another object, whieh now drew near. In an opem
space behind the eoni^table there was seen approaching
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 117
“ a white chariot,” drawn by two palfreys in white
damask which swept the ground, a goklen canopy
borne abov'^e it making music with , silver bells and
ill the chariot sat the the
bc'autiful occasion of all this glittering homage ;
rortiine’s plaything of an hour, the Queen of England —
queen at last — borne along upon the waves of this sea
of giory.
There slic sate, dressed in while tissue robes, her fair
hair llowing loose over her shoulders, and lier temples
circled with a light coronet of gi)Jd and diamonds
— most beaiiti ful — Slovenliest — i \ iq^ f a yjiu u; edf perhajis,
as she seemed at that hour, ^Qdl Engiaiurs daughtf'rs.
Three short years have yet to pass, and again, on a
summer morning, Queen Anne Roleyn will leave the
Towit of London — not radiani then with beauty on a
gay errand of coronation, but a poor wandering ghost,
on a sad, tragic errand, from which she will never more
return, passing away out of an t‘artli where she may
stay no longer, into a [iresencc where, nevertheless,
we know that all is well — for all of Jis — and therefore
for her.
Jamks Anthony Fhoudk: Hiatory of England,
(b) Subjects for Class Study
I
Descriptive Composition.
This extract from Froude’s History of England is an
admirable example of what descriptive composition
should be. Let us therefore examine it a little more
closely, to see in what way it can help us to write a
good description of our own.
Froude’s object is to put before us a clear and distinct
118 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
impression of Queen Anne Boleyn, and the methods by
which he docs this deserve to be very carefully studied.
First of all we have the use of contrast. Froude, to
begin with, shows us the queen “ radiant with beauty
on a gay t*rrand of coronation,” and he paints for us a
picture full of colour and glittering detail, all of which
helps us more clearly to realise the splendour and
significance of the scenes
For observe that he does not introduce Anne
Boleyn to us at once, but skilfully keeps our interest
suspended until he can bring her in at the most effective
moment. He thend'ore leads up to this by describing
in detail “ the blazing trail of splendour ” by which she
is preceded, to convey to us some idea of the might
and majesty of which she is the very crown and summit.
At length she comes :
In an o[)en space behind the constable there was
seen approacliing a w'hite chariot,” drawn by
two palfreys in white damask which swept the
ground, a golden canopy borne above it making
music with silver bells : and in the chariot sat the
obse rved of all observers, the beautiful occasion
of all this glittering homage ; fortune’s plaything
of an hour, the Queen of England— queen at last —
borne along ujxm the waves of this sea of glory.
Here we see her at the moment of her greatest
triumph, the “most beautiful — loveliest — most
favoured, perhaps, as she seemed at that hour, of all
England’s daughters. ’ ’
And then we turn to the other side of the picture :
Three short years have yet to pass, and again
on a summer morning, Queen Anne Boleyn will
leave the Tower of London — not radiant then
with beauty on a gay errand of coronation, but a
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 119
poor wandering ghost, on a sad, tragic errand, from
which she will never more return.
Thus Froude by the skilful use of contrast, suspense,
and dramatic crisis gives us an unforgettable portrait
of the tragic queen. Wiih a few bold strokes he
sketches the portrait as a whole, and then fills in
this outline with a wealth of detail which never blurs
the clear image of the picture, but serves only to make
it more distinct, vivid, actual, and convincing.
Try to follow this method in your own descriptions.
II
The Noun : Case, v
Case is the relation in which a noun or pronoun
stands to some other word or words in a sentence.
This relation may be shown in three ways :
1. By the order of the words in a sentence ; as, “ The
dog bit the
2. By means of a preposition ; as, “ The hare ran
through the field.”
3. By change in the form of a word (that is,
inflection) ; as, “ This was done by the womarCs
husband.”
There are five cases in* English :
1. The Nominative Case, the case of a noun or
pronoun when it is the subject of a verb ; as, “ He
arrived early the next morning.”
2. The Vocative Case, the case of a noun used to
address a person or thing ; as, ‘‘ O Death! where is thy
sting ? ” “ Friends, listen to the good news.”
8. The Accusative (or Objective) Case, the case
of a noun or pronoun which is the direct object of a
verb or preposition ; as, “ The arrow pierced his right
eye»
120 A PIIOGIIESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
4. The Genitive (or Possessive) Case, the case
which usually denotes the possessor ; as, “ They found
the king's crown lying under a bush.”
5. The Dative Case, the case of a iK)un or j>ronoun
when it is the indirect object of a verb ; as, “ They
gave him a g(»ld watch.”
The Genitive is now the only case in whioli English
nouns undergo inllcetion.
The Gi'iiitivc of compound nouns is formed by
adding V to the last word of the compound ; as,
“ Smith tlu* butcher’s dog.”
(c) Exekcisrs tn the Use of Reference Hooks
1. liook up the meanings of the following words :
guilds, gaudy, stains, arras, tapestry, tissue, sheriff, defile,
isolated, countenance, cavalcade, surcoats, purfled, miniver,,
abbots, mitred, stole, crazier, mace, jHtgeant, lattices, palfreys,
damask, canopy, borne, homage, coronet.
2. Derive arras, sheriff, cavalcade, surcoats, crazier,
palfrey, damask, homage, canopy.
3. Refer to a map of Txuidon and to your atlas, and find
the position of all the places mentioned in the extract.
(d) Exercises in Written English
1, Use the following expressions in sentences of your
own making : from Temple Bar to the Tower, railed off along
the whole distance, crowding to see the procession pass, the
grim gates rolled back, increasing in elaborate gorgeousness,
the van of the procession, the blazing trail of splendour, a
golden canopy, the observed of all observers, a poor wanderisig
ghost, where she may stay no longer.
2. Taking this passage as your model, describe, as
realistically as you can, Queen Anne Boleyn, poor
wandering ghost," on her way to execution. The desCrip-
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 121
tion may be either an imaginary one, or founded upon
information you have collected ; preferably the latter.
3. Ill what case are the nouns in the following Nciitences :
(flf) The families of the * London citizens were stirring
early in all houses.
(b) The sheriffs were pacing up and down on their
great Flemish horses.
(r) The French ambassador's train formc‘d the van
of tlic cavalcade.
(fl) Tlie ollicers of the queen's household succeeded
the marshal in scarlet and gold.
4. Summarise the last three paragraphs, using about
fifty words in all.
5. Rewrite tlic second sentence (“ From Temple Bar . . .
room and order ") as a series of simple sentences. Then
combine these simpl(^ senteiic<‘s into one complex sentence,
and comjiare your version with the original.
(c) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use each of the words given in Question 1, Section (e),
in sentences of your own construction.
2. Examine the last three paragraphs from the point of
view of unitf/. Ofies each paragraph possess a separate
theme ? If you tliink it does, say in each case what it is.
If you think it does not, suggtfst in w'hat way tlic para-
graphs should be remodelled.
3. IVIakiiig use of the chief points given in the extract,
describe the coronation procession as it might have lieen
described by one of the onlookers to his wife, who had been
unable to go.
4. Comment upon the English of the following, and
suggest improvements :
(а) I have an aunt on whom virtues seem to be heaped
in large concrete masses.
(б) I was now just going up the drive, and I was
feeling very down.
122 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(c) The hymn and the prayers are sung, and the head-
mistress of the school asks them to sit down
while she dictates some letters.
(d) If, as you probably are, interested in sport, excellent
tennis courts arc provided.
(e) The town has many excellent hotels and boarding-
houses suitable for every pocket.
(/) For historians there is a Quaker burial-ground
dating back to 1707.
5. The following are the opening words of a short story :
It was nearly midnight, and London was enveloped
in a thick fog. No sound could be heard but the dull,
muffled roar of the tralfic. Suddenly a door of a
near-by house opened, and a woman ran screaming
into the street.
Continue this story round the class, until it is brought to
a satisfactory conclusion.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. What is your opinion of this passage on Anne Boleyn,
considered as a piece of sound descriptive writing ?
2. What is the object, and what the effect, of introducing
the quotations from contemporary accounts ?
8. Does the pathos of the concluding paragraph ring
true, or do you tliink that It is in any w’ay false or ex-
aggerated ? Give your reasons.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
The following are six well-known proverbs exi)ressed in
other words :
(а) Do not criticise in other people the faults that you
yourself possess.
(б) Some things are not as valuable as they appear to
be. . .
(c) It is true that I have not got all that I want, but I
have at least got some of it.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 123
' t
(d) If a thing needs putting right and you see to it
at once, it will save you a great deal of time
and trouble in the end.
(e) Each of these men insists that the other is to
blame, but there is really nothing to choose
between them. *
(/) Nothing is so bad that it could not be worse-
Name these six pro\crbs.
LESSON SIXTEEN
(a) Rkading KxEiicisji
SIMON DANZ
Simon Danz has conic home afjain
From cruising about with his buccaneers ;
He has singc‘d the beard ol* tlie King of Spain,
And carried away t)ic Dean of Jat n
And sold him in Algiers.
In his house by the Maesc, with its roof of tiles,
And weatlu'rcocks flying aloft in aii*.
There are silve r tankards of antique stylos,
Plunder of convent and castle, and piles
Of carj)ets rieli and rare.
In his tuliji-garden there by the tow'ii,
Ovcrlooldng the sluggish, stream.
With his Moorish ca]> and dressing-gown,
The old sea-captain, hale and brown.
Walks in a waking dream.
A smile in his gray mustachio lurks
Whenever he thinks of the King of Spain,
And the listed tulips look like Turks,
And the silent gardener as he w^orks
Is changed to the Dean of Jaen.
124
A PROGRESSI\"E ENGLISH COURSE 126
The windmills on thr outermost
Vcrjrc of the ln.ndsea]^e in the liazo,
To him arc towers on the Spanish coast,
With whiskcr’d sentinels at their post.
Though this is the river Maese.
But when the winter rains begin,
He sits and snu)kes by the blazing brands.
And old seafaring irien come in,
Goat-beardt'd, gray, and with double eliin.
And rings upon tluir hands.
They sit there in the shadow and shine
Of the flickering fire of the Avinter night ;
Figures in colour and design
Like those of Rembrandt of the Rhine,
Half darkness aiul half light.
And they talk of ventures lost or w^on,
And tlioir talk is ever and ever the same.
While they drink the red wine of Tarragon,
From the eellars of sonic Spanish Don,
Or convent set on flame.
Restless at times with lieavy slridts
He paces his parlour to and fro ;
He is like a ship tJiat at anchor rides,
And swings with the rising and falling tides,
And tngs at her nnehor-tow.
Voices mysterious far and near,
Sound of the wind and sound of the sea.
Are calling and whisjiering in his car,
“ Simon Danz 1 Why stayest thou here ?
Come forth and follow me.’*
126 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
So he thinks he shall take to the sea again
For one mdre cruise wjjh his buccaneers,
IJp singe the beard of the King of Spain,
And capture another Dean of Jacn
And sell him in Algiers.
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.
(b) SuiUECTS FOR Class Study
I
Some Figures of Speech (i).
We have seen that it is usually advisable to write
English that is plain and direct. None the less, when
we wish to gain sonic special effect, we shall find that it
is often necessary to vary this direct form of expression
by using what are known as Figures of Speech.
Instead, for instance, of plainly saying, “ All kings
must die,” we can say less directly, “ Sceptre and
crown must tumble down,” and thus add greatly to
the vividness of what wc write.
Two of the most important figures of speech are the
Simile and the Metaphor.
A Simile is a comparison between two things w’hich
differ in kind, but are alike in the particular point to
wliich attention is directed. For example, ‘‘ He ran
like a hare,” is a simile in ’which two things (the man
and the hare) which differ in kind, are alike in the
particular point (swiftness) to w'hich attention is
directed. — ^A simile is usually introduced by a word
of comparison such as likCt so, as.
A Metaphor is a condensed or implied simile ;
that is to say, it is a simile in which one side of the
comparison has been suppressed. For example, ” The
ship ploughs the ocean,” is a metaphor, because it
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 127
means, “ The ship turns up the water as a plough
turns up the earth.” Here the metaphor has been
expanded into a simile. And that is the real test
of a metaphor — Can it be expanded into a simile ?
The metaphor is perhaps the most generally used of
all the figures of speech, and you can therefore intro-
duce it fairly freely. But you must be careful not to
confuse or mix your metaphors. Mixed metaphor
consists in combining in the same subject metapiiors
taken from different sources ; as, “ Italy is a narrow
tongue of land the backbone of which is formed by the
Apennines ” ; or, “ H(‘ threw aside the mask, and
showed the cloven hoofJ*^
Another figure of speech is Personification. This
means the attribution of life or feeling to lifeless
objects or abstract qualities ; as, “ Through the city
Famine and Fever stalked.”
A fourth figure is Apostrophe ; that is, an ex-
clamatory address made in the course of a public
speech, or in a poem, either to a personified object, or
to an absent person as though present ; as, “ Yet once
more, O ye laurels, and once more, ye myrtles brown,
with ivy never sere, I come to jiluck your berries
harsh and crude,”
All the above Figures of Speech are based upon
likeness.
II
The Verb ; Number and Person.
Number is the change that takes place in the form of
a verb to show whether we are speaking of one thing
or more than one.
Person is the form taken by a verb to show whether
the subject denotes the person speaking, the person
128 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
spoken to, or^he person spoken ol* ; that is, the first
person, the second person, or the third pei'son.
These changes in the form of the verb are called
inflection. In Old English such cJianges were
numerous, hut now only a few remain.
Agreement.
A verb agrees with its subject in number and person ;
that is to say, when the verb does undergo changes to
show whether Ave are speaking of one thing or more
than one, and w'hethcr the subject denotes the first,
the second, or the tliird person, the form used must be
the one that agrees w4th its subject. For example, in
“ He is late,” the form is shows that the subject is
third person singular, and the verb thus agrees with
its subject “ he.”
Th(‘ follow ing are some important rules of agreement,
w^hich you should very carefully note :
1. If two or more singular nouns or pronouns
form the subject, the verb must be in the
plural ; as, “ Beaumont and Fletcf^r are two
of tlie best known Elizabethan dramatists.”
2. When two or more singular nouns or pronouns
refer to one and the same* thing, the verb is in
the singular ; as, ‘‘ The head’Cook and bottle-
washer was a man of great importance.”
8. If tw^o different nouns combine to form one idea,
the' verb is in the singular ; as, “ Rum and
milk was served out to all the troops.”
4, If two nouns, the former of w^hich is in the
singular, arc joined by with, besides, as well
as, the verb is in the singular ; as, “ Jack,
besides Tom and Dick, was there.”
5. Two or more sing^l^l^ words joined by nor or
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 129
or are followed by a verb in thff^singular ; as,
“ Neither meat nor drink was to be had/’
(c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words, as used
in the poem : buccaneers^ weathercocks, tankards, plunder,
slavish, antique, verge, sentinels, flickering, ventures,
2. Use the proper Refcrcincc Books to help you to explain
tliCvSc allusions :
(a) lie has singed the beard of the King of Spain.
(b) In his house by the Maese,
(c) In his tulip-garden there by the town.
(d) With his Moorish cap and dressing-gown.
(e) Like those of Rembrandt of the Rhine.
(/) Wliile they drink the red wine of Tarragon,
From the cellars of some Spanish Don,
ig) And capture another Dean of Juen,
And sell liim in Algiers,
(d) Exercises in Written English
1. Select three similes from the poem, and show how
each of these similes can be compressed into a metaphor.
2. Give a clear-cut word-picture of the old buccaneer.
3. Take down from dictation and punctuate the first
two stanzas.
4. Use two appropriate descriptive adjectives with each
of the following nouns : buccaneer, tankard, stream, ^cap,
tulips, Turk, gardener, landscape, rains, fire, night, Don,
stride, voices.
5. Write two paragraphs on the first day of a new term
at school. The two paragraphs should consist of not less
than twelve sentences in all. Vary the length of the
sentences, have a topic sentence for each paragraph, and
take care that all the sentences are properly linked up.
II. — 9
180 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
{e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use each of the words given in Question 1, Section (r),
in sentences of your own making.
2. Say in which of tlie following sentences the verb does
not agree with its subj<;ct, and where necessary recast the
sentences correctly :
(n) Neither of us are going to the concert.
(b) \ great variety of flowers were to be seen.
(c) John and I arc going for a walk.
(d) Mr. Webster as well as his family were invited.
(c) Everybody were delighted with the play.
R. (iive the coireet pronunciation of the names of the
following famous painters ; Rubens, Millais, Millet, Van
Dyck, Romney, Franz Hals, Tintoretto, Velasquez, Holbein,
Greuze, Paul Veronese, Turner,
Mention the name of one well-known picture painted
by each.
4. Tell the story of one of the old sea-captain’s buccan-
eering exploits. IVy to make the story full of colour and
action.
5. Describe one of the moments you would like to live
again.”
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Mention half a dozen examples of the way in which
Longfellow has introduced touches t)f “ local colour ” or
atmosjihcrc ” into the poem.
2. I-ongfellow has recently been described by Mr. Arnold
Bennett, as “ very nearly the world’s worst poet.” Read
some more of Longfellow’s poems, and then say what you
tliink of this criticism.
8. Write a short appreciation of “ Simon Danz,” carefully
considering its merits and its defects. ^
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 181
( g ) Exercise in Thinking
It has been calcnlatcd that J^riiain throws away in
petty waste (says the Daily Express) nion: than £150,000,000
every year. The annual waste list inelurles soap, match-
ends, candle-ends, mustard, tickets, ei«v;irott.t*-ends, pins
and clips, siring, gas, electricity, fuel, bones, town refuse,
tin cans, and waste paper.
Take three or four of the examples of pett y waste given
above, and suggest how, in each case, a substantial saving
could be effected, and to what particular uses some of tliis
so-called w'aste could be put.
LESSON SEVENTEEN
(a) Reading Exercise
THE ORIGIN AND USE OF MONEY
When the division of labour has been once thoroughly
established, it is but a very small part of a man’s wants
which the produce of his own labour can supply. He
supplies the far greater part of them by exchanging
that surplus part of the produce of his own labour,
which is over and above his own consumption, for such
parts of the produce of other men’s labour as he has
occasion for. Every man thus lives by exchanging,
or becomes, in some measure, a merchant, and the
society itself grows to be what is properly a commercial
society.
But when the division of labour first began to take
place, this power of exchanging must frequently have
been very much clogged and embarrassed in its opera-
tions. One man, we shall suppose, has more of a
certain commodity than he himself has occasion for,
while another has less. The former, consequently,
would be glad to dispose of, and the latter to purchase,
a part of this superfluity. But if this latter should
chance to have nothing that the former stands in need
of, no exchange can be made between them. The
butcher has more meat in his shop than he himself can
consume, and the brewer and baker would each of them
be willing to purchase a part of it. But they have
nothing to offer in exchange, except the different
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 188
productions of their respective trades, and the butcher
is already provided with all the bread and beer which
he has immediate occasion for. No exchange can,
in this case, be made between them. He cannot be
their merchant, nor they his customers ; and they arc
all of them thus mutually less serviceable to one
another. In order to avoid the inconveniency of such
situations, every prudent nmn in every period of
society, after tlie first establishment of the division of
labour, must naturally have endeavoxired to manage
his affairs in such a manner, as to have at all times by
him, besides the peculiar produce of his own industry,
a certain quantity of some one commodity or other,
such as he imagined few people would be likely to
refuse in exchange for the produce of their industry.
Many diff(*rcnt commodities, it is probable, were suc-
cessively both thought of and employed for this
purpose. In the rude ages of society, cattle are said
to have been the common instrument of commerce ;
and, thougli thej' must have been a most inconvenient
one, yet, in old times, wc find things were frequently
valued according to the number of cattle which had
been given in exchange for them. The armour of
Diomede, says Homer, cost only nine oxen ; but that
of Glaucus cost a hundred oxen. Salt is said to be the
common inslrumeiit of commerce and exchanges in
Abyssinia ; a species of shells in some parts of the
coast of India ; dried cod at Newfoundland ; tobacco
in Virginia ; sugar in some of our West India colonies ;
and there is at this day a village in Scotland, where
it is not uncommon, I am told, for a workman to carry
nails instead of money to the baker’s shop or the ale-
house.
4^1n all countries, however, men. seem at last to have
been determined by irresistible reasons to give the
184 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
preference, for this employment, to metals above every
other commodity. Metals can not only be kept with
as little loss as any other commodity, scarce anything
being less perishable than they arc, but they can like-
wise, without any loss, be divided into any number of
parts, as by fusion those parts can easily be re-united
again : a quality which iio other equally durable
commodities possess, and which, more than any other
quality, renders them fit to be the instruments of
commerce and circulation. The man who wanted to
buy salt, for example, and had nothing but cattle to
give in exchange for it, must have been obliged to buy
salt to the value of a whole ox, or a whole sheep, at a
time. He could seldom buy less than this, because
what he was to give for it could seldom be divided
without loss ; and if he had a mind to buy more, he
must, for the same reasons, have been obliged to buy
double or triple the quantity, the value, to wit, of two
or three oxen, or of two or three sheep. If, on the
contrary, instead of sheep or oxen, he had metals
to give in exchange for it, he could (easily proportion
the quantity of the metal to the precise quantity of
the commodity which he had immediate occasion
for.
Adam Smith : The Wealth of Nations,
[h) Subjects for Class Study
I
Exposition.
In Narrative Composition, you will remember, we
set out to tell a story, and in Descriptive Composition
to convey to others a distinct impression of the chief
characteristics of a thing. In Exposition, which is a
third kind of composition, it is our object to explain
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 186
something to those who, at the moment, know little or
nothing of the subject.
Now to explain a thing clearly to other people is not
an easy matter, for although the explanation may be
clear enough to us, it may be not at all clcjir to them ;
and we are inclined to think that those who do not
immediately grasp our meaning are unaccountably
dull. But the fault really lies with ourselves. What
has really happened is that we have failed in our
estimate of the knowledge and attainments of our
readers, since it is quite obvious that an explanation
that may be easily understood by some j)eople, may
be completely unintelligible to others. Most of us
recognise this when w'c arc explaining something to a
very young child.
Therefore, the first thing that we must do is to
adapt our explanation to the capacity of those for
whom it is intended. Find out what they already
know, make that your starting-point, and then go on
to sometliing which they do not know.
You will often find it advisable to go over tlie same
facts from tw^o or three different points of view, because
if one point of view is not undcirstood it is quite ])rol>able
that another will be. Moreover, from time to time,
stop for a moment in your explanation, and summarise
the conclusions you have so far reached. You will
thus be able to gather up the threads, and carry on
the reader from that point with a simplified knowledge
of the subject.
Finally, there is no better w^ay of making your
meaning clear and unmistakable, than by mentioning
definite illustrations of each important point you are
attempting to explain.
186 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
II
The Verb : Tense.
Tense is the form taken by a V€Tb to show the time
at which the action takes place, and its completeness or
incompleteness at that time.
There arc three main divisions of time : Present,
Past, and Future, each of which is represented by a
separate tense, similarly named. The Present Tense
is used to describe an action that is ffoing on now ;
the Past, to describe an action that has already taken
place ; and the Future, to describe an action that has
still to take place. In addition to the three tenses
named, there is another called the Future in the
Past, which is used to describe an action th*at at some
time in the past was regarded as future ; as, “ I said
that he would succeed,""
Each of these tenses has a corresponding tense
denoting that the action is perfect or complete. These
are called the Present Perfect, the Past Perfect,
the Future Perfect, and the Future Perfect in the
Past. — Further, each of these eight tenses has a con-
tinuous form, showing the action as progressive or
continuous.
We thus have the following table of tenses :
Present 1 move.
Present Contipuous . . I am moving.
Present Perfect , . , I have moved.
Present Perfect Continuous . I have been moving.
Past I moved.
Past Continuous . • . / was moving.
Past Perfect . . . , 1 had moved.
Past Perfect Continuous . I had been moving.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 187
Future . . . . . / shall move.
Future Continuous . . . 1 shall be moving.
Future Perfect . , • I shall have moved.
Future Perfect Continuous . I shall have been moving.
Future in the Past . . . 1 should move.
Future in the Past Continuous 1 should be moving.
Future Perfect in the Past . 1 should have moved.
Future Perfect in the Past
Continuous .... 1 should have been moving.
Auxiliary Verbs.
It will be seen that most of the tenses given above
are formed with the help of other verbs. Verbs that
are used to form the tenses, etc., of other verbs are
called Auxiliary Verbs. These auxiliaries are :
have^ may^ shall^ willy do.
Sequence of Tenses.
If you read a page or two of any good book, you
will see that certain tenses arc always followed by
certain other tenses. This is known as the Sequence of
Tenses. The chief rules are these :
1. A present or future tense in the principal clause
may be followed by any tense in the sub-
ordinate clause. Thus, we can have, “ They
say that he is right,” or “ They say that he
was right,” or “ They say that he will be
right.” .
2. A past tense in the principal clause is followed
by a past tense in the subordinate clause ; as,
“ They said that he was right.”
8. When, however, the verb in the subordinate
clause expresses a customary action, or a
permanent truth, or contains a comparison,
the present tense is used, even though there
138 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
is a past tense in the principal clause ; as,
“ He said that he runs a mile every day,”
and, “ He gave you a higher salary than he
gixws me.”
'rhe above rules do not apply to adjective-clauses.
The verb in an adjcctive-clause may be in any tense
that fits the meaning.
(c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the tncaiiings of the following words : estab”
lished, produce^ surplus, cousumption, society, commercial^
clogged, embarrassed, operations^ commodity, superfluity,
merchant, mutually, prudent, industry, successively, deter-
mined, irresistible, perishable, circulation, triple, precise,
2. Consult an encyclopaedia, or any other appropriate
Reference Book, to collect the following information about
Adam Smitli :
. (a) When ho was bom and wj^en he died.
\b) His nationality.
(c) The year in which the Wealth of Nations w^as
piihlishod.
{(1) Tlie subject w'ith which that book deals.
(c) The names of three or four other well-known
writers who have wTitten on the same subject.
(d) Exercises in Written English
1. Point out in what respect the English of each of the ^
following passages differs from present-day English :
(a) One gggtJh we shall suppose, has more ^f^a pertain
<^^ j i^dit v than he himself has o ccasi on for,
while another has less.
(h) Tlie butcher is alrea<^-pro;pded with all the bread
and beer which ht^ias
(c) He cannot be their merchant, his
customers.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 189
(d) In order to avoid tlie inconveniency^ of such
situations . . .
(e) In the rude ages of society, cattle^ are said to have
been the common instrument of commerce.
(/) If lie has a mind to buy more, he must, for the same
reasons, have b<‘en obliged to buy double or
triple the quantity, the value, to wit, of two or
three oxen, or of two or three sheep.
2. Complete in your own words the folltiwing incomplete
sentences :
(a) It is but a very small part
(b) This power of exchanging must have
(c) Rut they have noLhing to
(d) Many <liffen*nt commodities, it is probable,
(c) In all countries, however, men M‘ein at last
(/) could seldom buy
3. Carefully study the extract, and then point out what
conditions and illustrations do not apply to the present day,
4. Write a paragraph, of about eight sentences, on Adam
Smith and his work.
5. Explain the meaning of all the allusions in the passage
beginning, “ The armour of Diomede, and ending, “ the
baker’s shop or the ale-house,” Consult Reference Books
if necessary, and refer to an atlas to find the exact piosition
of the various towirs, countries, etc., that are mentioned.
(t*) ExercisEvS in Spoken English
1. Use each of the words given in Question 1, Section (r),
in sentences of your own making.
2. As an exercise in exposition, explain how to make a
simple wireless set ; or if you are unable to do this, then
any article that you do know how to make.
3. Correct any mistakes in the following :
(a) The Primate is the wife of the Prime Minister.
(b) Charles II. told people that they could get drunk.
and gamble and do what they liked. Tliis was
called the Restoration.
140 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(c) Gravity was discovered by Isaac Walton. It is
chiefly noticeable in the autunm, when the
apples are falling off the trees.
(d) Robert Burns, in 1787 became literally a lion.
(e) The feminine of manager is managerie.
4. Explain in your own words and your own way what
Adam Smith tells us in this extract about the origin and
use of money.
5. Say which of the following sentences violate the
rules in regard to the sequence of tenses, and, where neces-
sary, recast the sentences correctly :
(a) He said that he will do it.
(b) I pointed out that tlie earth is round.
(c) They affirmed thsit he Cfinies here every day.
(d) He says that he was first on the list.
(c) He taught you better than he teaches me.
(/) They stated that they have completed the contract.
if) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1 . Compare the style in which this extract is written with
the style of the extract in Lesson Eight, pointing out the
chief difl'erenccs, and quoting wherever possible.
2. Name the authors of each of the following works :
Twelfth Night, The Lady of the Lake, L' Allegro, The Sketch
Book, By the Statue of King Charles at Charing Cross, He
Fell among Thieves, Quality Street, Saint Joan, Journey's End,
Give a short account of any one of these works.
(^) Exercise in Thinking
Find out what is meant by the division of labour,” and
then say what you consider to be its advantages and dis-
advantages. — Give some examples of it which you can find
in your school and in your home.
(There is an excellent account of the division of
labour in Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations, the
book from which our extract is taken. Read
this account, if possible.)
LESSON EIGHTEEN
(a) UnAuiNG Exercise
MILK FOR THE CAT
When the tea is brought at five o’clock,
And all the neat curtains are drawn with care.
The little black eat with bright green eyes
Is suddenly purring there.
At first she pretends, having nothing to do,
She has come in merely to blink by the grate.
But, though tea may be late or the milk may be sour
She is never late.
And presently her agate eyes
Take a soft large milky haze.
And her independent casual glance
Becomes a stiff hard glaze.
Then she stamps her claws or lifts her ears.
Or twists her tail and begins to stir,
Till suddenly all her lithe body becomes
One breathing trembling purr.
The children eat and wriggle and laugh ;
The two old ladies stroke their silk :
But the cat is grown small and thin with desire.
Transformed to a creeping lust for milk.
14X
142 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Tlie white saucer like some full moon descends
At last from the clouds of the table above ;
She sighs and dreams and thrills and glows,
Transfigured with love.
She nestles ov(;r the shining rim,
Buries her chin in the creamy sea ;
H(ir tail hangs loose ; each drowsy paw
Is doubled under each bending knee.
A long dim ecstasy holds her life ;
Her world is an infinite shapeless white,
Till her tongue has curled the last holy drop
Then she sinks back into the night,
Draws and dips her body to henp
Her sleepy nerv^es in the great arm-chair,.
Lies defeated and liuried de ep
Three or four hours unconscious then*.
Hakold Moxro.
(If) Subjects for Class Study
I
Common Errors.
Some of tile commonest errors that afe made in
writing English have already been pointed out. These*
include the use of t/fnsr sort for that sort ; of different to
or different than for different from ; of like for as (e.g,,
“ Do it like I do ”) ; of nei her ... or for neitf^ . . .
nor ; of one another when referring to only two people,
and each other when referring to more than two; of
ntker, neither, each, and every, followed by a plural,
instead of a sing\ilar, verb ; of scarcely than or hardly
than instead of scarcely when and hardly when ; and of
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 148
between followed by each {between implying two things
and each only one).
Another very common mistake is to be found in such
a sentence as, “ Let you and / settle this between us.”
A moment’s reflection will show you that this is wrong.
Why ? Because let is a transitive verb, and one of its
objects is /, a pronoun in the nominative case. But a
transitive verb must be followed by the accusative ;
that is, “ Let you and I ” should be, “ Let you and
We have a somewhat similar error in, “ This is
strictly between you and Here between is a pre-
position, and all prepositions in English are followed
by the accusativ^e case. ‘‘ Between you and I ” should
therefore be, “ Between you and
Sometimes we have a wrong use of the comparative
and the superlative ; as, ‘‘ This is by far the best of the
two loud-speakers,” and, “ Which is the simpler of
the three methods you suggest ? ” The comparative,
howev^cr, you will remember, should be used when wc
compare only two things, and the superlative when we
compare more than two.
How many first acts has Hamlet ? Obviously only
one. . But according to some writers it has three, as
they speak of the “ three first acts.” They mean, of
course, the first three acts,” and that is the phrase that
should be used — first three, first six, first ten, etc. — in
this or any other connection.
Again, are we to say “ none is ” or “ none arc ” ?
None is a contraction of no one, and should therefore,
strictly speaking, be followed by the singular. But
nowadays it is more usually followed by the plural.
Hence, although its use in the singular cannot be
regarded as incorrect, it is on the whole preferable to
avoid it.
144 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
II
The Verb : Voice.
Voice is the form of the verb which shows whether
the subject of the verb does the action or is affected by
the action.
There are two voices : Active and Passive. When
the subject of the verb does the action, the verb is in
the Active Voice ; as, “ The audience loudly applauded
the speaker.” When the subject of the verb is affected
by the action, the verb is in the Passive Voice ; as,
“ The speaker wcls loudly applauded by the audience.”
Only Transitive Verbs can be used in the Passive.
You will see from the examples given above that the
object of the verb in the active voice becomes the
subject of the verb in the passive voice ; therefore only
transitive verbs {i.e, those that take an object), can be
used in the passive.
Retained Object.
Read these sentences :
1 . She gave me a picture.
2. He taught them French.
8. They showed him the plan.
From this you will gather that some verbs take a
double object in the Active Voice : a direct and an
indirect object. The direct objects are picture^ French^
and pZan, and the indirect objects mCy them^ and him.
In the Passive Voice, one of these two objects can be
retained. Thus, if we turn the first of these sentences
into the Passive we get either, “ I was given a picture
by her,” or “ A picture was given me by her.” In the
former case, the direct object picture is retained, and
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 145
in the latter, the indirect object 7ne. Each of these
is called a Retained Object.
( c ) Exercises in the Use of Reference Rooks
1. Look lip the meanings of the following words : blink,
agate, casual, lithe, wriggle, transformed, thrills, transfigured,
nestles, ecstasy, infinite, defeated, unconscious.
2. Refer to the Daily Mail Year Book, the Daily Nexvs
Year Book, or any other suitable Reference Book, for somt*
information about the following : WinsUm Churchill, Ramsay
MacDonald, David Lloyd George, Henry Segrave, Bramwell
Booth, Marshal Foch.
3. Give the derivation of these words : ecstasy, pretends,
casual, saucer, transfigured, drowsy, defeated.
( d ) Exercises in Written English
0 Give one word similar in meaning and one word
opi>osite in meaning to each of the following : bright,
suddenly, late, stiff, begins, lithe, laugh, descends, loose,
sleepy, abot'c.
^ Add predicates to the following subjects ;
(a) The little black cat
(b) Her agate eyes
(c) All her lithe body
(d) The two old ladies
(e) A long dim ecstasy
^ Rewrite the second stanza as a series of simple sen-
tences. Then combine these into one complex sentence,
and compare your sentence with the original.
Let the cat tell the story of a typical day in its lite
amidst these luxurious surroundings.
( e ) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use each of the following words and phrases in sen-
tences of your own making : at five o'clock, agate, with bright
II. — lO
146 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
green eyes^ ecstasy, lithe, having nothing to do, begins to stir,
each drowsy paw, three or four hours, infinite.
2. Carefully explain the difference between the active
and the passive voice. Give three examples from the
poem, of verbs in the active voice, and three of verbs in the
passive. What is a “ retained object ” ?
3. Give a few Thougnts and Observations on “ Meat for the
Dog,'*'’ treating the subject humorously or otherwise.
4. Give the correct pronunciation of the following names :
Goethe, Dante, Moli^.re. Racine, Ariosto, Tolstoy, Ibsen,
Cervantes, Synge, Rousseau, Heine, Descartes.
To what country did each of these people belong ?
5. Correct any mistakes you may lind in the following :
(n) It is essential for them to realise that none of us
were present, and that they must leave you
and I alone.
(h) The responsibility lays between you and he.
(c) Each of them were proved to be wremg.
(d) Who was it given to you by ? The tallest of the
two men Y
(>. The sentences in the following paragraph are not in
their right order. Rearrange them so as to make a para-
graph's clear and effective as possible :
' He has a flute in his mouth and a little drum in his
haiid.(^y)ne stands outside my window as 1 write.
{' little wooden dolls with red cloths tied aroimd
their necjks, and each not (»ver a foot long, are the gods
which enable him to do wonderful thingsv''.L.et me
give you, ii picture of an Indian juggler.i^His only
assistant is a little turbaned boy, who sits beside him,
whom he will shortly put into a basket not more than
two leet sfpiare, and with him will perform the noted
basket trick of India. « Tie is black-faced and black-
bearded, and his shirt sleeves are pulled up above his
elbows. TIis sole possessions consist of three small
baskets, ranging in size from half a peck to a bushel,
a couple of doths, and a tripod made of three sticks,
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 147
eiicli two feet long, and held together by a string at the
top.(^f;Hc is performing his tricks in the dusty road
without a table, cabinet, patent boxes, or any of the
accompaniments of the wizard.
¥ HANK C AttPKNTEll.
(/) Exehcisks in thf. Appreciation of Literature
1. Write a eart*fully considered apjuveiation of this
poem, paying partic:ular attention to the following points :
(a) TJiC use <»f picturesque and appropriate adjexdives.
(ft) The creation of a definite ‘‘ atmosphere.”
(c) The closeness and a<‘curaey of tlie observation.
2. Say in what books the following characters api>ear :
Sir Tnt/if Belch ^ Ladif Teazle^ Smike, Becky Sharp, Elizabeth
Bennet. John Silver, Dick Sicivellcr, Sir Roger dc Coverley.
Give a description of any one of them.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
Writing in January 1830, Lord Macaulay said :
If we were to prophesy that in the year 1030 a
po[)ulation of fifty millions, better fed, clad, and
lodged than the English of our time, will eovc^ these
islands, that Sussex and Huntingdonshire will be
wealthier than the wealthiest parts of the W<\st Riding
of Yorkshire now are, that cultivation, rich as that of
a flower-garden, will be carried up to the very tops of
Ben Nevis and llelvellyn, that machines constructed
on principles yet undiscovered will be in every house,
that there will be no highways but railroads, * no
travelling but by steam, that our debt, vast as it seems
to us, will appear to our great-grandchildren a trifling
encumbrance, which might easily be paid off in a year
or two, many people would think us insane.
Consider, in detail, to what extent this prophecy has
been fulfilled. Give examples and illustrations wherever
possible.
LESSON NINETEEN
(a) Reading Exercise
SAXON AND NORMAN
Wainba, Tip, and help me an thon becst a man ;
take a turn rnund tlie back o’ the hill to gain the wind
on them ; and when thou’st got the weather-gage, thou
mayst drive them before thee as gently as so many
innocent lambs.”
“ Truly,” said Wamba, without stirring from the
spot, “ I have consulted my legs upon this matter,
and they are altogether of opinion, that to carry my
gay garments through these sloughs, would be an act
of unfriendship to my sovereign person and royal
wardrobe ; wherefore, Gurth, I advise thee to call off
Fangs, and leave the herd to their destiny, which,
whether they meet with bands of travelling soldiers, or
of outlaws, or of wandering pilgrims, can be little else
than to be converted into Normans before morning,
to thy no small ease and comfort.”
“ The swine turned Normans to my comfort ! ”
quoth Gurth ; “ expound that to me, Wamba, for my
brain is too dull, and my mind too vexed, to read
riddles.”
“ Why, how call you those grunting brutes running
about on their four legs ? ” demanded Wamba.
“ Swine, fool, swine,” said the herd, “ every fool
knows that.”
“ And swine is good Saxon,” said the Jester ; “ but
148
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 149
how call you the sow when she is flayed, and drawn,
and quartered, and hung up by the heels like a
traitor ? ”
“ Pork,” answered the swineherd.
“ I am very glad every fool knows that too,” said
Wamba, “ and pork, I think, is good Norman-French ;
and so, when the brute lives, and is in the charge of a
Saxon .clave, she goes by her Saxon name ; but becomes
a Norman, and is called pork, w'hen she is carried to the
Castle-hall to feast among the nobles ; what dost thou
think of this, friend Giirth, ha ? ”
“ It is but too true doctrine, friend Wamba, however
it got into thy fool’s pate.”
“ Nay, I can tell you more,” said Wamba, in the
same tone ; “ there is old Alderman Ox continues to
hold his Saxon epithet, while he is under the charge of
serfs and bondsmen such as thou, but becomes Beef,
a fiery French gallant, when he arrives before the
worshipful jaws that are destined to consume him.
Mynheer Calf, too, becomes Monsieur de Veau in the
like manner ; he is Saxon when he requires tendance,
and takes a Norman name when he becomes matter of
enjoyment.”
“ By St. Dimstan,” answered Gurth, “ thou speakest
but sad truths ; little is h ft to us but the air we breathe,
and that appears to have been reserved wth much
hesitation, solely for the purpose of enabling us to
endure the tasks they lay upon our shoulders. The
finest and the fattest is for their board ; the loveliest
is for their couch ; the best and bravest supply their
foreign masters wdth soldiers, and whiten distant lands
with their bones, leaving few here who have either the
will or the power to protect the unfortunate Saxon.”
Sir Walter Scott : Ivanhoe,
150 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(b) Subjects for Class Study
1
The English Language : Borrowings.
The English language had ils origin in that of the
Jutes, Angles, and Saxons, tribes who came from the
low-lying districts of Germany near the mouth of
the Elbe, and who invaded and conquered this country
in the fifth and sixth centuries.
You will have gathered, however, from what Scott
says in this extract from Ivanhoe, that English is not
a pure language, but that some of its words have been
borrowed from other sources. These borrowings are
called loan-words, and there an*, as a matter of fact,
many more loan-words than native words in our
language. The chief sources from which we have
borrowed are Celtic, Latin, Greek, and Scandinavian,
Here we shall tell you a little about the Celtic and Latin
(including the earlier French) borrowings.
Celtic Borrowings.
The people whom the English conquered were the
Britons, a Celtic people who spoke a language not unlike
Welsh. Consequently, wc have a few loan-words of
Celtic origin. Such are dun (brown), brock (badger),
inch (island), avon (river).
Latin Borrowings.
Before Britain was conquered by the English, it had
been occupied by the Romans for nearly four centuries
(48 A.D. to 409 A.T).), But although it is probable
that a good many Latin words were used by the
Britons, very few of these passed into English, the
chief borrowings at this time consisting of military
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 151
terms : coin (Lat. coloniu, settlement), IawcoIu ; caster
and Chester (Lat. oastrum, camp), hawcaster, Winchester ;
wick and wich (Lat. vicus, a town), Ipsme/?., R'wv'fcham.
From the beginning of the seventh century to the
coming of the Normans we have another set of Latin
loan-words, due mainly to the introduction of Chris-
tianity into England, and the growth of trade bt'tween
England and the rest of Europe. Examples of words
borrowed at this period are : candle^ nun^ altar, font,
mass, linen, mini, pound, pease, penny, cheese, pear. It
will be observed that most of these words are cither
church terms or words used in connection with trade.
A third set of borrowings took place during the two
hundred years following the Norman Conquest, These
are called Anglo-French borrowings, and are usually
reckoned as Latin borrowings because French is
mainly derived from Latin. At first the words
borrowed were almost purely Norman-French, Le.
words belonging to the French dialect spoken by the
Normans ; but ultimately then^ arose a distinct
Anglo-French dialect which develoix^d entirely on its
own lines. Tht\sc Anglo-French words include w^ords
relating to war, such as armour, standard, battle, lance,
and fortress ; words relating to law and government,,
such as, justice, judge, jury, gaol, prison, hill, act,
parliament, court, assize ; w ords relating to the church,
such as, ceremony, prayer, cloister, homily, sermon ; and
words relating to food, such as, beef, mutton, pork,
venison. The names of the living animals, however,
are native w’ords : ox, sheep, swine, deer. And this, as
Dr. Henry Bradley observes, is the point of Wamba’s
remark ; for the “ Saxon ” serf had the care of the
animals when they were alive, but \vhen killed they
were eaten by his “ French ” superiors.
152 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
TI
The Verb : Mood.
Mood is the form of the verb which shows liie mode
or manner in which a statement is made.
There are four moods : Indicative, Imperative,
Subjunctive, and Infinitive.
1. The Indicative Mood is used when a statement
is made as a fact, as a question, or as a supposition
regarded as a fact ; as, “ I have consulted my legs
upon this matter ” ; “ Why, how call you those
grunting brutes running about on their four legs ? ”
“ Then if she has won the race the prize is hers.”
2. The Imperative Mood is used to express a
command ; as, “ Expound that to me, Wamba.”
8. The Subjunctive Mood is used to express a
wish, purpose, or condition. It may be used in either
Simple Sentences or in the subordinate clauses of
Complex Sentences.
The Subjunctive is used in Simple Sentences to
express a wish ; as, “ Heaven preserve us ! ”
The Subjunctive is used in the subordinate cJauscs
of Complex Sentences to express ;
(а) A Wish, Command, or Request ; as, “ I wish
that it were fine.” “ The judge ordered
that the prisoner Ife at once released.” “ I
ask that he he severely reprimanded.”
(б) A Purpose ; as, “ Take care that you he not
late.”
(These tw’o usages, however, are almost obso-
lete.)
(c) A Condition ; as, “ He would agree to your
proposal, if he were an honest man.”
The Subjunctive Mood is now little used, and it has
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 158
very few separate forms to distinguish it from the
Indicative.
4. The Infinitive Mood is not really a mood at all,
blit a noiin-phrase, as explained more fully in Lesson
Twenty-One.
(c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words, os used
in the extract : sovereign^ converted, expound, vexed, flayed,
doctrine, pate, alderman, epithet, serfs, bondsmen, gallant,
worshipful, tendance.
2. Say which of the words in the following passage are
derived from French and which from Old English (or Anglo-
Saxon, as it is sometimes called) :
Thou speakest but sad truths ; little is left to us but
the air wc breathe, and that appears to have been
reserved with much hesitation, solely for the purpose of
enabling us to endure the tasks they lay upon our
shoulders.
Consult a dictionary, if necessary.
3. Refer to Brewer’s Reader's Handbook, or any other
suitable Book of Reference, and give an outline of the plot
of Ivanhoe, and a list of the chief characters.
( d ) Exercises in Written English
1. Use the following expressions in sentences o your
own : gain the wind on them, ivithout stirring from the spoi,,
wandering pilgrims, my brain is too dull, in the charge of a
Saxon slave, in the same tone, the finest and the fattest, with
much hesitation, to protect the unfortunate Saxon.
2. Write this passage in simpler English :
“ Truly,” said Wamba, without stirring from the
spot, 1 have consulted my legs upon this matter, and
they are altogether of opinion, that to carry my gay
garments through these sloughs, would be an act of
154 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
unfriendship to my sovereign person and royal ward-
robe ; wherefore, Gurth, I advise thee to call off Fangs,
and leave the herd to their destiny, which, whether
they meet with bands of travelling soldiers, or of
outlaws, or of wandering pilgrims, can be little else
than to be converted into Normans before morning,
to thy no small ease and comfort.”
8. Give the substance of the passage, using not more
than a hundred words.
4. Write out the extract in the form of a dialogue, putting
the names of the characters at the beginning of each speech,
and including as stage directions all those parts that are
not conversation ; thus :
iVamba ; Why, how call you those grunting brutes
running about on their four logs ?
The Herd : Swine, fool, swine ; every fotd knows that.
5. Turn to a picture in any illustrated novel you have
not yet read, and write a detailed account of the scene
you think it suggests. Then refer to the novel to see how
far your account tallies with that given by the author.
{e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Name two words similar in meaning to each of the
words given in Question 1, Section (c). Then choose any
three of these groups and construct sentences w'hicli show
that you ktiow the meanings of the words in each group you
have chosen.
2. Sketch the character of Wamba, the Jester, and con-
trast it with that of Gurth.
8. Turn the second paragraph into Indirect or Reported
Speech.
4. State the mood of the verb or verbs in each of the
oftowing sentences :
(a) I-iong live the king !
(5) Tell me not in mournful numbers,
Life is but an empty dream.
(c) I should not accept it, if I were you.
(d) To think that it has come to this !
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 155
5. Give a short account of the Normans, making use of
any reference books to which you care to refer.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Tjteratuue
1. State your opinion of Scott's character-clrawing, as
far as you can judge from Wamba and Gurth. — Do you
think that these two characters arc made to spj^ak naturally,
having regard to their social position ? Give your frank
opinion, with illustrations from the extract to support what
you say.
2, Name three well-knoi?vTi novels and three well-known
poems which Scott wrote, and give a short account of one
of them.
3. \Vliat other famous writers lived at about the same
time as Scott ? Mention half a dozen of them, and specify
one work of each.
4, Wiat do you consider to be the chief difference
between the way in wiiich Scott wrote novels and the way
in which they are written at the present day ?
(g) Exercise in Thinking
Carefully explain how you would cross the road in the
following circumstances ;
(a) When you had just got off a ’bus or tramcar.
(b) On a very foggy day.
(e) In a one-way street.
(d) Where there is traffic passing in both directions
and no policeman to regulate it ,
(e) At cross-roads in the country.
(/) At cross-roads in town.
(g) During a heavy snowstorm.
LESSON TWENTY
(a) Reading Exeucisr
THE SEVEN AGES OF MAN
All the world’s a staj^e,
And all the men and women merely players ;
I’liey have their exits and their entrances ;
And one man in his time plays maJ(3^ parts.
His acts being seven ages. At first the infant .
Mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms.
And then the whining schoolboy , with his satchel.
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school. And then the lo vei!^
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress’ eyebrow. Then a soldi^ i^
Full of strange oaths, and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bul^ble reputation
Even in the cannon’s mouth. And then the justice^
In fair round belly with good capon ?lined.
With eyes severe, and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modem instances ;
And ^ he plays his part. The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slippered "pantaloon,
mth sjf)ectl^es on nose and porfeh on side.
His youthful hose well saved, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank ; and his big manly voice.
Turning again toward childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all.
156 ^
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 157
That ends this strange eventful history,
In second childishness and mere oblivion.
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.
William Shakespeare.
(h) Subjects for Class Study
Revision.
In this revision lesson you will find a summary of the
chief subjects discussed in Lessons Eleven to Nineteen.
Nouns : Number.
The change which a noun undergoes to show whether
we are speaking of one thing, or more than one, is
known as Number. If %^noun^jdenotes only one thing
it is said to be in the Singular ; if it denotes more than
one, it is said to be in the Plural. — ^The plural is
usually formed by adding s to the singular, but there
are numerous exceptions to this rule.
Nouns : Gander.
QelSder is the grammatical classificfition of objects
according to their sex. There are four genders :
Maaculine — the names of 'males ; Feminine — ^the
names of females ; Common — ^names which denote
either male or female ; Neuter — ^names of inanim&te
objects. — ^There are three wa5rs^of lowing the gender
of nouns : by the usi of a suffix ; by change of word ;
by use of compound words, one of which denotes the
gender. S6me nouns, such as bUmde^ dowdy^ prude^
shreWf have no masculine ; and some nouns, where the
question of sex Is not emphasised, can be used to
denote either sex ; e.g., dog and horse.
158 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Nouns : Case.
Case is the relation in which a noun or pronoun
stands to some other word in a sentence. This relation
may be shown by the order of the words in the sentence,
by means of a preposition, or by a change in the form
of a w'ord. — There arc live cases in English : Nomina-
tive, Vocative, Accusative, Genitive, and Dative.
Verbs : Number and Person.
Number is the change that tak(‘s place in the form
of a verb to show whether we are spcaldng of one thing
or more than one. — Person is the form taken by a
verb to show whether the subject denotes the person
s])eaking, the person s[)oken to, or the person spoken
of ; that is, the first person^ the second person, or the
third person.
Verbs : Agreement.
A verb agrees with its subject in number and person.
In the following special cases the verb is in tlie singular ;
(1) When two or more singular nouns refer to one and
tlic same thing. (2) When two different nouns com-
bine to form one idea. (3) When two nouns, the
former of which is in the singular, are joined by with,
besides, as well as, (4) W^hen two or more singular
words are joined by nor or or.
Verbs : Tense.
Tense is the form taken by a verb to show the time
at which the action takes place, and its completeness or
incompleteness at that time. The three main tenses
are : Present, Past, and Future. In addition to
these, there is another tense called the Future in the
Past, used to describe an action that at some time in
the past was regarded as future. Each of these tenses
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 159
has a corresponding tense denoting that the action is
perfect and complete, and each of the eight tenses thus
formed has a continuous form, showing the action as
progressive or continuous.
Verbs : Sequence of Tenses.
The chief rules as to the Sequence of Tenses are :
(1) A present or future tense in tlie principal clause
may be followed by any tense in the subordinate clause,
(2) A past tensi^ in the principal clause is followed by a
past tense in th(j subordinate clause, unless the verb in
the subordinate clause expresses a customary action, or
a permanent truth, or contains a conij)arison.
Verbs ; Voice.
There are two voices — ^Active and Passive. When
the subject of the verb does the action, the verb is in
the Active Voice- When the subj(‘ct of the verb is
affected by the action, the verb is in the Passive
Voice. Since tlic object of the verb in the Active
Voice becomes the subject of the verb in the Passive
Voice only transitive verbs can be used in the passive.
Verbs : Retained Object.
Some verbs take a double object in the Active
Voice ; a direct and an indirect object., one of which
can be retained in the passive. This object is then
called the Retained Object.
Verbs : Mood.
Mood is the form of the verb which shows the mode
or manner in which a statement is made. There are
four moods : the Indicative Mood, which is used to
make a statement or ask a question ; the Imperative
Mood, which is used to express a command ; the
160 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Subjunctive Mood, which is used to express a wish,
purpose, or condition ; and the Infinitive Mood,
which expresses the verbal notion without asserting
it of any subject.
The Use of Words : Synonyms, Malaprops, and
Slang.
Try to find the exact word to express your meaning,
and be satisfied with no other. Study words with the
closest attention, especially synonyms. Beware of
malaprops, and avoid slang.
Reproduction of a Story-Poem.
To reproduce a story in verse is more difficult than
to reproduce a story in prose. A story-poem is usually
told in a more roundabout fashion, and the incidents
often require to be rearranged. The best plan is to
make a note of the chief facts, and to write up your
version with these facts as a basis. Metre and rime,
and all poetical words and expressions must be avoided.
Narrative Composition.
The simplest kind of Narrative Composition consists
in telling a short and easy story, such as a fable or an
anecdote, or in relating some little incident that we
ourselves have seen. From this we pass to compound
narrative, in which we tell the story of a person’s life,
or give an account of a period of history, or some other
series of events. In narrative composition you will
usually be dealing with a sequence of events, and the
best order to adopt is the order in which the events
happened. Occasionally, however, it will be advisable
to vary this order.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 161
Descriptive Composition.
In Descriptive Composition it is our object to convey
to others an accurate impression of the chief char-
acteristics of a thing. Description is of various kinds.
It may be quite simple, as when we describe some
common object or product, or it may be more dillicult
and complex, as when we describe some well-known
building, or a famous picture, or a person, or some
piece of natural scenery. Your aim should be to make
your description both clear and distinct. Contrast
and suspense are also of importance.
Exposition.
In Exposition it is our object to explain something
to those who know little or nothing of the subject.
Wc must therefore adapt our explanation to the
capacity of those for whom it is intended. It is also
advisable to state the same fact from different points
of view, to summarise our conclusions at various
stages, and to provide concrete illustrations of the
particular point we arc trying to explain.
Punctuation.
The chief aim of punctuation is clearness : it shows
how the w^ords in a sentence should be grouped together
so that its meaning may be readily understood. The
four main stops arc the full stop, colon, semicolon, and
comma ; but to these it is customary to add ‘the
question mark, the exclamation mark, the dash, the
apostrophe, the hyphen, brackets, quotation marks,
and the use of capital letters.
Figures of Speech.
A Figure of Speech is the use of a word in a special
sense with the object of heightening the effect of wliat
II. — II
162 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
we say or write. Some of the chief figures of speech
based on resemblance are simile, metaphor, personi-
fication, and apostrophe.
The English Language.
English is a mixed language. It had its origin in
the language spoken by the .Tutes, Angles, and Saxons,
who came to this country in the fifth and sixth cen-
turies, and the structure of the language and most of
the common words arc English. But it has borrowed
a large part of its vocabulary from foreign tongues,
principally C(‘ltic, Latin, Greek, and Scandinavian.
Common Errors.
Some common (errors in writing English are : the
use of the nominative case after a transitive verb, the
use of the nominative instead of tiu* accusative after a
preposition, the wrong use of the comparative and
superlative, and the use of such a phrase as the three
first for the first three,
(c) PjXErcisks in t!1k Use of Refj^urnce Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words, as used
in the extract given : merely, exits, mewling, puking, ballad,
pard, jealous, justivc, capon, sates, instances, pantaloon,
hose, shank, treble, oblivion, sans. — Put each word in a
sentence.
2. Collect some information about Shakespeare ; or, if
you have already done this in Part One, find out something
about one or tvro of the greatest writers living at the same
time as Shakespeare.
(d) Exercises in Written English
1. (a) Explain what is meant by a synonym and a
malaprop, giving two examples of each.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 163
(6) Siiy in what way the following words arc often mis-
used, and write sentences to show the correct use of each :
literalltf, aggravate, laij, mulnnU lady. nice, awful.
2. (/i) Give the plurals of these nouns ; topaz, sheaf j hoof,
duty, donkey, motto, fuol, soprano, cloth, penny, index, genius,
means, maidservant, manservant, analysis.
(h) Give the feminine of these nouns : hero, wizard, duke,
marquis, boar, gander, colt, ram, sir, sloven, great-uncle,
landlord, cocksparrow.
3. Taking The Seven Ages of Man as your model, write
a little prose description of The Seven . ige^ of Woman.
4. Take down from dictation and punctuate the first
eleven lines of the extract. (As far as to the word
eyebrow.)
5. Give your impressions of breaking- up day at the end
of the school year.
(<7) Exkucises IN" Spoken English
1. Explain what is meant by Concord (or Agreement),
Auxiliary V\'rb, and Sequence of Tenses. — Give the rules for
tlie sequcnct' of tenses, with examples in each case.
2. Reproduce in your own words and at full length wliat
Shakespeare says of the Seven Ages of Man.
3. Give some account of the Latin influence on the
English vocabulary, adding examples wherever possible.
4. As an exercise in Exposition explain how some simple
scientific experiment is carried out.
5. Give the correct pronunciation of the foUow'ing words,
all of which occur in the preceding lessons : pneumonia,
irascible, carcase, pudding, isosceles, chauffeur, hangar,
laboratory, hospital. Psyche, burglar, Rudyard, Maugham,
Van Dyck, Holbein, Velasquez, Tolsloy, Cervantes, Dante,
Goethe, MolUre.
164 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. From which play of Shakespeare's is The Seven Ages
of Man taken ? Give an outline of the plot of the play and
a list of the chief characters.
2. Who is the speaker of the passage given? Write a
short sketch of his character.
3. Show how the passage illustrates the character of the
speaker, giving definite ex^unples wherever possible.
4. When you are criticising a book or a poem state the
various matters which you think it is necessary to take into
consideration before giving your opinion of the work.
6. When you are engaged in this critunsm, do you think
that you should let your opinion be influenced by what
other people have said about the book ? Discuss this
matter as fully as you can.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
Every nation has its own particular national character-
istics. State what you consider to be the special national
characteristics of the people of :
(a) England.
(h) Scotland.
(e) Ireland.
(d) Wales.
(e) The United States,
(/) France.
(g) Germany.
(h) Italy.
(t) Russia.
Do you think that any of these national characteristics
can be regarded as superior to others ? If so, say, with
your reasons, the choice you w'ould make.
SECTION THREE
LESSON TWENTY-ONE
(a) Reading Exercise
POOR PETER
“ Wc’ll put out the candle, my dear. VVc can talk
just as well by firelight, you know. There ! Well,
you see, Deborah had gone from home for a fortnight
or so ; it was a very still, quiet day, I remember,
overhead ; and the lilacs were all in flower, so I sup-
pose it was spring. My father had gone out to see
some sick people in the parish ; I recollect seeing him
leave the house with his wig and shovel-hat and cane.
What possessed our poor Peter I don’t know ; he had
the sweetest temper, and yet he always seemed to like
to plague Deborah. She never laughed at his jokes,
and thought him ungenteel, and not careful enough
about improving his mind ; and that vexed him.
‘‘ Well ! he went to her room, it seems, and dressed
himself in her old gown, and shawl, and bonnet ; just
the things she used to wear in Cranford, and was known
by everywhere ; and he made the pillow into a little —
you arc sure you locked the door, my dear, for I should
not like any one to hear — ^into — ^into a little baby,
with white long clothes. It was only, as he told me
afterwards, to make something to talk about in the
town ; he never thought of it as affecting Deborah.
And he went and walked up and down in the FUbert
165
166 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
walk — half-hidden by the rails, and half-seen ;
and he cuddled his pillow, just like a baby, and talked
to it all the nonsense i)eoplc do. Oh dear ! and my
father came stc‘pj)inj( stately up the street, as he always
did ; and what should Ik* see but a little black crowd
of people — I dare say as many as twenty — all peeping
through his garden rails. So he thought, at hrst, they
were only looking at a new rh<^dodcndron that was in
full bloom, and that he was very proud of ; and he
walked slower, that they might have more time to
admire. And he wondered if he could make out a
sermon from the occasion, and thought, ])crhaps,
there was some relation between the rhododendrons
and the lilies of the field. My poor father ! When he
came nearer, he began to wonder that they did not
see him ; but their 1 leads were all so close together,
peeping and peeping ! My father was amongst them,
meaning, he said, to ask them to walk into the garden
with him, and admire the beautiful vegetable pro-
duction, when — oh, my dear, I tremble to think of it —
he looked through the rails himself, and saw — I don’t
know what he tliought he saw, but old Clare told me
his face went quite grey-white with anger, and his
eyes blazed out under his frowning black brows ; and
he spoke out — oh, so terribly ! — and bade them all stop
where they were — not one of them to go, not one of
them to stir a step ; and, swift as light, he w^as in at
the garden door, and down the Filbert walk, and seized
hold of poor Peter, and tore his clothes off his back —
bonnet, shawd, gown, and all — and threw the pillow
among the people over the railings ; and then he was
very, very angry indeed, and before all the people
he lifted up his canc and flogged Peter !
{To he continued,)
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 167
(h) Subjects fob Class Study
1
Summarising a Longer Passage.
We have already dealt with tlu* first stape in Sum-
marising : that of giving the pith or substance of a
single paragraph. Wc have now to consider the best
way to make a summary of a longer passage, consisting,
as a rule, of several paragraphs and some hundreds of
words. You will probably lind that at first this kind
of summarising is a little dillieult, and that a good deal
of practice is neecssar}'^ before you can do it r(‘ally well.
But much can be done by method, and if you are
systematic in your work there can be no doubt that the
difHenlty will be very greatly rcdu(‘ed. The ])lan we
recommend is therefore this :
First of all glance through the whole passage to find
out the subject with which it deals, and put down what
you consider to be a suitable title. Then go carefully
over the passage again, and note down the theme or
topic sentence of each paragraph, together with any
conclusions that have been r<*ached. Study these
essential points, put aside the original, and wTite the
summary in your own wwds.
The summary should usually be WTillen in Reported
Speech (see Lesson Twenty-Two), and should form
one paragraph. Remember that it is your object
to give an exact summary of the original passage.
You should therefore add nothing of your own,
nor correct any mistakes that the original may
contain.
Take particular care that your summary is not
disproportionate. Each part should be dealt with
according to its relative importance, and not according
168 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
to the space it occupies in the passage you are
summarising.
It will usually be advisable to present the facts in
the same order as they appear in the original. But this
is not absolutely necessary : you can rearrange them
in any order you please, if you think that it will be an
improvement to do so.
Finally, the finished summary should be in good,
clear English ; that is to say, it should read like a piece
of original composition.
As an example of what is required, we give below a
summary of the Reading Exercise in Lesson Four :
Summary :
Tin: Discovery of Judge Jeffreys
The hiding-place of Judge Jeffreys was accidentally
discovered by a “ trimmer,” whom he had once bullied
and terrorised in court. The trimmer was walking
through Wapping when he saw' Jeffreys, disguised as a
sailor, looking out of the w'indow of an ale-house. He
raised the alarm, and the house was instantly sur-
rounded by a threatening crow'd. Jeffreys’ life, how-
ever, was saved by a company of the trainbands, and
he w'as taken before the Lord Mayor. But the Mayor,
an obscure and simple man, was too bewildered and
agitated to deal with the situation, and Jeffreys, for
his own protection, begged to be sent to prison. An
order w'as therefore obtained from Whitehall for
Jeffreys’ committal to the Tower, and, half dead with
fright, and pursued by a raging mob whose repeated
attacks had to be repelled by the militia, he w^as at
length safely lodged in the fortress, where he w'as
destined to end his days in indescribable misery and
horror.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 169
II
The Verb Infinite.
Up to now wc liave dealt with the finite vc-rb onh ;
that is, those parts of the verb which are limited by a
subject. But there are some parts of the verb which
cannot have a subject ; namely, the Infinitive Mood,
the Participles, and the Gerund ; and these are
called the Verb Infinite.
The Infinitive Mood.
The Infinitive, although it is calked a mood, is
really a noun-phrase, and can be used to do cxactl}-
the same work as a noun ; as, “ To row is an excellent
means of keeping fit,” where the Infinitive is used as
the subject of a verb ; or as, I should like to come^'*
where it is used as the object of a verb.
The Infinitive is usually preceded by <o, but many
verbs are followed by an infinitive without to ; as
may, can, shall, will, do.
The Participles.
Participles are verb-adjectives ; that is to say,
they arc partly verbs and partly adjectives. For if
they are the participles of transitive verbs they can
govern a noun or its equivalent in the accusative, and
they do the work of adjectives in limiting the applica-
tion of nouns.
There are two participles : the Present Participle,
ending in -ing, and the Past or Perfect Participle,
ending in -d, -ed, -t, -n, or -en.
We have an example of a present participle in, ” The
girl was reading a book ” ; and of a past participle in,
” He was very much disliked,’*^ In the former of these,
the double function of the participle can be clearly seen.
170 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
It is an adjective, because it limits the application of
the noun “ ffirl,” «'\nd a verb, because it governs the
noun “ book ” in the accusative case.
The Gerund.
The Gerund is a verb-noun ending in -ing ; that is,
it is partly a noun and partly a verb : a noun, because
it names the* action of the verb, and a verb, because,
when formed from a verb used transitively, it can be
follow(‘d by a direct object. For example, “ She likes
playing tennis,” where the gerund names the action
of “ playing,” and is tlierefore equivalent to a noun,
and at the same time is followed by the direct object
“ tennis,” and is therefore equivalent to a verb.
The Present Participle and the Gerund are some-
times confused, because they botli end in -ing ; but
there should be no diflieulty in distinguishing between
them, if it is remembered that the participle is an-
adjective and the gerund a noun.
(c) Exkik’Tses in the Use of Kefekence Books
1. Look np the iTieaniiigs of the following words : parish.
recoUect^ remember, possessed, plague, nngenteel, affecting,
rhododendron, production, blazed, bade, flogged,
2. Collect some inforiiiation about the life of Mrs.
Gaskell, and about her novel Cranford, from which this
extmet. is taken.
(d) ExEBCISES in WlllTl'EN Engijsit
1. Distinguish between the meanings of the words in each
of the following groups, and write sentences to illustrate
their use :
(а) Social, sociable.
(б) Number, quantity.
(c) Argument, dispute, debate.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 171
2. Point out whiit is weak in onch of these sentences, and
rewrite them so as to improve the EnfjHsh :
(а) These waters are bottled up and sent away to
(»1her countries which are too far to come for
them.
(б) The discussion recommences afresh, and he is
forced to relate all that happened to him.
(e) Many new faces are to l>e seen, and they seem to
herd togellier in one cf»rner of the jday^round.
((/) The prices are quite modi rate, and they are
quite within the ran^^[e of an average man of
means.
(e) Another interestinj^ feature is lh(; market day,
which is alw'ays Tuesday, when 11 m* local farmers
drive in their cattle, sheep, and pij»:s, and others
W'ho brinp: all kinds of fruit and dairy produce.
(/) Just inia^ifine getting out of bed at seven, after a
few weeks of laying in bed till twelve. Why,
it’s ghastly !
3. Say, with your reasons, which of the following are
participles and ■which arc gerunds :
(a) Their heads were all so close together, peeping and
pcepiugn
(b) T recollect seeing him leave the house,
(c) She thought him not careful enough about fm-
prouing his mind.
(d) My father came stepping stately up the street.
(c) His eyes blazed out under his frowriing black
brows,
4. Make a summary of this extract, using about a
hundred words.
5. “ Wliat possessed (iur poor Peter I don’t know,” says
Miss Matty, who is telling the story ; “he had the sweetest
temper, and yet he always seemed to like to plague
Deborah.”
Give an account of some other prank which Peter played
on Deborah.
172 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
{e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Put eacli of these words and phrases into sentences
of your own : all in flower, he always seemed, recollect,
remember, improving his mind, something to talk about in the
town, a sermon for the occasion, affecting^ all peeping through
his garden rails, blazed, the lilies of the field, swift as light,
down the Filbert walk, lifted up his cane.
2. Siifjgcst the questions to which the following are the
answers :
(fl) Rowland Hill, in 1840.
(b) The head of the Uoimui Catholic Church.
(c) She was captured by the English, and burnt as a
heretic in 1481.
(d) The Titanic.
(e) The bell which in the Middle Ages was rung every
night at sundown.
8. Give a description of Deborah, as you imagine her to
have been, and suggest why you think poor Peter liked
to plague her.
4. Pronounce the following wonls correctly : bathe, break,
claim, gaol, eight, hair, skein, steak, veil, gray, safe, their,
taint, heir, scarce, strange, fame, prey, blaze.
5. Rcprodiu^c in your own words this extract from
Cranford, but relate the story as if told by old Clare.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Give a bht)rt account of Mrs. (hiskcll and her work.
2. Say what you know of Cranford as a whole, and men-
tion the names of the chief characters in the book.
3. What other w'cll-known authors were writing at about
the same time as Mrs. Gaskell ? Give the names of two
novelists, two poets, and two historians wlio were her
contemporaries, and specify one of the most important
works of each.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 178
(g) Exercise in Thinking
The late Lord Cromer, it is said, once wrote the following
humorous little rime to illustrate the lack agreement
between the si>e11ing and the pronunciation of English
words ;
When the English tongue we speak,
Why is “ break *’ not rhymed with freak ” ?
Will you tell me w’hy it's true
"We say “ sew,'’ but likewise “ Jew ” ?
“ Beard ” soimds not the same as “ heard ” ;
“ Cord ” is different from “ word ” ;
“ Cow ” is COW", but “ low ” is low ;
“ Shoe ” is never rhymed with “ foe.”
And since ” pay ” is rhymed with ” say,”
Why not ” paid ” with ” said,” I pray ?
We have “ blood ” and “ food and “ good ” ;
“ Mould ” is not pronounced like “ could ” ;
And, in short, it seems to me
Sounds and letters disagree.
Read aloud the verses given above, carefully pronouncing
all the words in quotation marks, and then say :
(a) Why you think it is that in modem English
“ sounds and letters disagree.”
(b) Whether you consider that our spelling should be
revised, and all w^ords spelled exactly as they
are pronounced. — Give reasons for whatever
view you take.
LESSON TWENTY-TWO
{ a ) Rf.ading Exercise
POOR PETER—
“ My dear, tJiat boy’s trick, on that snnny day,
when all seemed .i^oing straight and well, broke my
mother’s heart, and changed my father for life. It
did, indeed. Old Clare said, Peter looked as wdiite as
my father ; and stood as still as a statue to be flogged ;
and my father struck hard ! When my father stopped
to take brcatJi, Peter said, ‘ Have you done enough.
Sir ? ’ quite hoars(‘ly, and still standing (pute quiet.
I don’t know what my father said — or if he sfiid any-
thing. Rut old Clare said, Peter turned to w^here
the people outside the railing were, and made them a
low' bow, as grand and as grave as any gentleman ;
and then walked slowdy into the house. I was in the
store-room helping my mother to make cow'slip w'inc.
I cannot abide the ^vinc now, nor the scent of the
flowers ; they turn me sick and faint, as they did that
day, when Peter came in, looking as haughty as any
man — indeed, c looking like a man, not like a boy.
‘ Mother ! ’ he said, ‘ I am come to say, God bless you
for ever.’ I saw’ his lips quiver as he spoke ; and I
think he durst not say anjd^hing more lovdng, for the
purpose that wras in his heart. She looked at him
rather frightened, and w’ondering, and asked him
what w’as to do. He did not smile or speak, but put
his arms round hc^r and kissed her as if he did not know
*74
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 175
how to leave off ; and before she could speak again, he
was gone. We talked it over, and could not under-
stand it, and she bade me go and seek my father,
and ask what it was all about. I four^d him walking
up and down, looking very highly displeased.
“ ‘ Tell your mother I have flogged Peter, and that he
richly deserved it.’
“ I durst not ask any more questions. When I told
my mother, she sat down, quite faint, for a minute. 1
remember, a few days after, I saw the poor, withered
cowslip flowers thrown out to the leaf ht^ap, to decay
and die there. There was no making of cowslip wine
that year at the rectory — nor, indec'd, ever after,
“ Presently ray mother went to my father. I know
1 thought of Queen Esther and King Ahasuerus ; for
my mother was very })retty and dtlicate-looking, and
ray father looked as terrible as King Aliasuc^rns, Some
time after they came out togellier ; and then my
mother told me what had happened, and that she was
going up to Peter’s room at my fatJier’s desire — though
she was not to tell Peter this — to talk the matter over
with him. But no Peter was there. Wi^ looked over
the house ; no Peter was there ! PiVen my father,
who had not liked to join in the search at first, helped
us before long. The rectory was a very old house —
steps up into a room, steps down into a room, all
through. At first, ray mother went calling low and
soft, as if to reassure the poor boy, ‘ Peter ! Pester,
dear ! it’s only me ’ ; but, by and by, as the servants
came back from the errands my father had sent them,
in different directions, to find where Peter was — as we
found he ^was not in the garden, nor the hayloft, nor
anywhere about — my mother’s cry grew louder and
wilder, ‘ Peter I Peter, my darling ! where are you ? ’
for then she felt and understood that that long kiss
1T6 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
meant some sad kind of ‘ good-bye.’ The afternoon
went on — my mother never resting, but seeking again
and again in every possible place that had been looked
into twenty times before, nay, that she had looked
into over and over again herself. My father sat with
his head in his hands, not speaking except when his
messengers came in, bringing no tidings ; then he lifted
up his face, so strong and sad, and told them to go
again in some new direction. My mother kept passing
from room to room, in and out of the house, moving
noiselessly, but never ceasing. Neither she nor my
father durst leave the house, which was the meeting-
place for all the messengers. At last (and it was
nearly dark) my father rose up. He took hold of my
mother’s arm as she came with wild, sad pace through
one door, and quickly towards another. She started
at the touch of his hand, for she had forgotten all in
the world but Peter,”
Mrs. Gaskell : Cranford,
(b) Subjects for Class Study
I
Direct and Reported Speech.
The difference between Direct and Reported Speech
is this : in Direct Speech we quote the exact words
used by a speaker, while in Rejwrted Speech we quote
his words with slight modifications to show that we
arc indirectly reporting them. For example :
The doctor said, “ I visit this patient every
day,”
is Direct Speech, because “ I visit this patient every
day ” are the actual words that the doctor used. But
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 177
if we were repeating his words to another person, some
little time afterwards, we should most probably say :
The doctor said that he visited that patient
every day.
How docs this differ from the original version ? In
the first place, it is introduced by the words, “ The
doctor said that . . ; secondly, /, a pronoun in the
first person, is changed to he^ a pronoun in the third
person ; thirdl^’^, visits a verb in the prc‘sent tense is
changed to visited, a verb in the past tense ; and lastly,
this, a word of nearness or proximity, is changed to
that, a word of remoteness.
From this, the following rules for turning a passage
from Direct into Reported Speech can be readily
deduced :
1. Reported Speech must be introduced by a clause
containing a verb of saying, etc,, in the past tense. For
insiance, “ They said that . . .”, “ She remarked
that . . “ He observed that . .
2. Hence the rules governing the sequence of tenses
must be followed. In other words, all verbs in the
present tense, except those that express a customary
fact or a permanent truth, must be turned into verbs
in the past tense. Thus, is becomes was, has becomes
had, shall becomes should, and so on.
3. All i^ronouns of the first and second person arc
changed to the third. Thus, I becomes he or she, we
becomes t?iey, and you becomes him, her, or them,
4. All words of proximity become words of remote-
ness, Thus, these becomes those, now becomes then,
here becomes there, thus becomes so, my becomes
his, etc.
In addition, words of address, such as Ladies and
Gentlemen, Mr, Chairman, Sir, must either be turned
II. 12
178 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
into an equivalent phrase, or, if unimportant, alto-
gether omitted. Thus, “ Lord Darlington said : Mr.
Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen,” might be rendered,
“ Lord Darlington, who then rose to address the
meeting, said that ...”
Here is an example :
Direct Form.
Mr. Mayor, — I thank you, and through you the
municipal authorities of this city, for this welcome.
And as it is the first time in my life since the present
phase of politics has presented itself in this country,
that I have said anything publicly within a region of
country where the institution of slavery still exists, I
will take this occasion to say that I think very much
of the ill-feeling that has existed and still exists between
the people in the section from which I (;ame, and the
people here, is dependent upon a misunderstanding of
one another.
From a speech by Pkesident Lincoln.
Reported Form.
President Lincoln said that he thanked the Mayor,
and through him the municipal authorities of that
city, for that welcome. And as it was the first time
in his life since that phase of politics had presented
itself in that country, that he had said anything
publicly within a region of country where the institu-
tion of slavery still existed, he would take that occasion
to say that he thought very much of the ill-feeling
that had formerly existed and that still existed between
the people in the section from which he himself had
come, and the people there, was dependent upon a
misunderstanding of one another.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 179
II
Twofold Use of Adjectives.
Adjectives can be used in two waj'-s ; as Predicative
Adjectives and as Epithet Adjectives. When an
adjective forms part of the predicate it is called a
Predicative Adjective ; as, “ This novel is excellent'
When an adjective does not form part of the predicate,
but stands next to the noun it limits, it is called an
Epithet Adjective ; as, “ This is an excellent noveV^
The Definite and the Indefinite Article.
The is sometimes called the Definite Article, and a
the Indefinite Article, but the is really a demon-
strative adjective and a an indefinite adjective, and
these are the terms you should use.
When reference is made to two different objects the
articles should be repeated before each ; as, We
have a black and a white eat,” The reason for this is
obvious.
Doubt is sometimes felt as to whether a or an should
be used before words of two or more syllables beginning
with the letter h. The usual practice is this : If the
accent is on the first syllable of the word, use a; if on
any other syllable, use an ; e.g., “ a heretic,” but “ an
heretical opinion.”
t
Agreement of Adjectives.
Adjectives arc sometimes said to “ agree ” with
the nouns they limit. But in modern English the only
adjectives that are inflected arc this and that^ which
have the corresponding plural forms these and those.
Consequently these are the only adjectives that can
agree with their nouns. But see that they do agree.
180 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
To say, “ I don’t like those sort of people ” is one of the
commonest mistakes in English.
(c) Exercist’s in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words :
hoarsely^ quiver, durst, zvithered, decay, rectory, haylojt,
tidings, reassure,
2. Explain the allusion to Queeii Esther and King
Ahasuerus, eonsulting a Reference Book, if necessary,
3. Giv'c the derivation of these words : father, mother,
gentleman, haughty, remember, errand, messenger.
( d ) Exercises in Written English
1. Take down from dictation and punctuate the passage
beginning, “ The afternoon w^ent on,” and ending, ‘‘ all in
the world but Peter.”
2. Turn each of the following into reported speech :
(a) Peter said, “ Have you done enough, Sir ? ”
(b) “ Mother ! ” he said, ‘‘ I am come to say, God
bless you for ever.”
(c) “ Tell your mother 1 have flogged Peter, and that
he richly deserved it.”
( d ) “ I durst not ask any more questions. Wlien I
told my mother, she sat down, rjuite faint, for
a minute. I remember, a few days after, I
saw the poor, withered cowslip flowers thrown
out to the leaf heap, to decay and die there,”
(Tlie speaker must in each case be clearly indicated.)
3. Make a summary of tiiJs passage, using not more than
150 words.
4. Tell in your owti way the story of poor Peter, as given
in this and the preceding lesson. Add the conclusion of the
story, making use of the information which, in Question 2,
Section (c). Lesson Twenty -One, you were told to collect.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 181
5. 'Write a paragraph of about seven or ciglit sentences
either for or against corporal punishment as a means of
enforcing disci [)line.
(c) ExiiiiciSEs IN Spoken Engmsii
1. Use each of these expressions in sentences of your own :
changed mif father fttr life, made them a low bozv, the scent of
the flowers, could not understand it, nor indeed ever after, grew
louder and wilder, in every possible place, meeting- place for
all the messengers, started at the touch of his hand,
12. Say wlijit you think of each of the following as a
specimen of good hlnglish, and make wliaL iinpruveinents
you consider nt'cessary :
{a) HKCKiAii (at Marlborough Street) : I never asked
no one for nothing, and nobody on tliis earth
never saw me ask no one for nothing.
(b) Oh, aril choo orJ ri-ite.
(c) Young Man (at Penge) : He passed by and said
“ good-night,” and my young lady inlaliated
and said good-niglit.”
(d) Nottingham Witness ; I swear lo sjieak the
trutli, tlie oily truth, and more than the truth.
(e) NoiiTii I^oxDON Tuadeu : 1 sell fruit and llowers,
and the police are dead nuts on me.
3. Make u]) a little story that lits in with one of the
following titles :
(a) The Tliree Wishes.
(b) The Cry in the Night.
(c) The Locked Door.
4. Name a word similar in meaning to each of tlie words
given in Question 1, Section (c). Then use these pairs of
words in sentences which show that you know the difference
between the meanings of the words in each pair.
5. Give a character-sketch of Miss Matty, who is telling
this story, taking care that your description is in harmony
with w^hat you can learn of her by studying the extract.
182 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of liiTERATURE
1. Does this extract give you any clue to the character
and temperament of Mrs. Gaskell ? If so, explain in what
way it does this.
2. Compare the style in which this extract is written with
the style of the extract from Macaulay, given in Lesson
Four. Which of these styles do you prefer ? Say why.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
Mr. James Douglas, writing in the Daily Express^ says :
Wc are all interested in life-planning, because every
man and every woman must at some time or other
be forced to meditate on it. Few of us are satisfied
with the way in which we have planned our life in
the past. ... As we look back wc perceive that we
have not expended much thought in planning our life.
Here is an opportunity to exptmd a little thought on
planning your own life. Plan it for the next ten years,
exactly in the way you would most like to live it.
LESSON TWENTY -THREE
{a) Reading Exercise
TO AUTUMN
Season of mists find mellow fruitfulness !
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun ;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eaves
run ;
To bend with apples the movss’d cottage -trees.
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core ;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazc'I shells
With a sweet kernel ; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never eease,
For Summer has o’er-brimm’d their clammy cells.
Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store ?
Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find
Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,
Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind ; ♦
Or on a half-reap’d furrow sound asleep.
Drowsed with the fume of poppies, while thy hook
Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers ;
And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep
Steady thy laden head across a brook ;
Or by a cider-press, with patient look.
Thou watchest the last oozings, hours by hours.
183
184 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Where are the songs of Spring ? Ay, where are they ?
Think not of them, thou hast thy music loo, —
While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,
And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue ;
Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn
Among the river sallows, borne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies ;
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn ;
Hedge-crickets sing ; and now witli treble soft
The redbreast whistles from a gardcai -croft ;
And gathering swallows twitler in the skies.
John Keats,
( b ) Subjects for Class Study
I
Metre and Verse (i).
Wc have already explained that one of the chief
distinctions between verse and proses is tJiat verse has a
rhythm or flow tliat is regular and that prose has not.
In other words, when wc read aloud a piece of verse,
we can hear a definite stress or beat at regular intervals,
as, for cxam])lc, in “ And touch the stubblc-plafns with
rosy liuc,” where every alternate syllable is stressed ;
but when we read aloud a })iecc of prose this regular
beat is absent. Rhythm with a regular beat is called
Metre.
Foot, Line, and Stanza.
In verse, a combination of stressed and unstressed
syllables is called a Foot, and a foot may consist of
not fewer than two and not more than three syllables.
A sviccession of a definite number of feet is called a
Line, and a group of lines forming a complete division
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 185
of a poem is called a Stanza or Verse, preferably a
Stanza.
For example, To Autumn has three stanzas, each of
these three stanzas has eleven lines, and each of these
eleven lines has Hwcfcet,
Kinds of Feet.
There are four kinds of feet, each of which has a
special name :
1. An unstressed followed by a stressed syllable ;
as, abroad, asleep, until. This is called an
Iambus.
2. A stressed followed by an unstressed syllable ;
as, furrow, clammy, Jldwers. This is called
a Trochee.
3. Two unstressed syllables followed hy a stressed
syllable* ; as, refered, on a I6g, will occur.
This is called an Anapaest.
4. A stressed syllable followed by two unstressed
syllables ; as, zvdnderful, chedrily, banister.
This is called a Dactyl.
Some English Metres.
Lines of verse are of various lengths : a line con-
sisting of three feet is called a trimeter ; of four feet,
a tetrameter ; of five feet, a pentameter ; and of
six feet, an hexameter. Of these*, the tetrameter and
the pentameter are by far the commonest.
Three of the most popular English metres are :
1. The lambic Tetrameter, Avhich is a line made
up of four iambuses ; as :
The way was long, the wdnd was cold.
2. The lambic Pentameter, which is a line made
up of five iambic feet ; as :
Until they think warm ddys will never cease.
186 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
8. The Anapsestic Tetrameter, which consists
of four anapaests ; as :
And the she6ii of their spears was like stars
on the sea.
You should very carefully note that in iambic verse
a trochee is often used instead of an iambus, in any
foot but the last (as in the first line of To Autumn ) ;
and that in anapaestic verse an iambus is often sub-
stituted for an anapaest (as in, “ For winter’s rains
and ruins are 6vcr ”). Moreover, in both these metres
an extra unstressed syllabic is sometimes used at the
end of the line.
II
Position of the Adverb.
It may be taken as a sound general nile that an
adverb should be placed as near as possible to the word
it qualifies. But the question arises as to whether it
should be put before or after this word. You should
therefore carefully note the following hints :
The adverb is usually placed ;
(a) Before an adjective, a preposition, or another
adverb ; as, “ He had a x)ery good dinner ” ;
“ The mine w as partly under the water ” ;
“ The play w^as exceptionally well written.”
{h) After, the direct object of a transitive verb ;
as, “ They taught him very welV^
(c) After an intransitive verb ; as, “ She speaks
clearly,^'" But some very common adverbs
— never ^ seldom^ often, always, generally, for
instance — arc usually placed before the
verb they limit ; as, “ He often comes here
to see us.”
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 187
{d) Between an auxiliary and its participle in
compound tenses of the verb ; as, “ I have
just received your letter.”
The position of the word only requires the greatest
care. It should, in accordance with the general rule
laid down, be placed as near as possible to the word it
limits, and usually before it. The following examples
will show how a sentence may change its meaning when
this word is moved from place to place :
(«) They think that only one was lent.
(b) They only think that one was lent.
(c) They think that one was only lent.
(d) Only they think th.at one was lent.
(e) Exercises in the Use of Reference Rooks
1. Look up the meanings of the following words, as used
in the poem: mellow, maturing, conspiring, core, gourd,
kernel, clammy, granary, winnowing, furrow, drowsed, fume,
szvath, gleaner, laden, oozings, stubble, choir, croft.
2. Consult an cncyclopsedia, a liistory of English Litera-
ture, or any otlier appropriate Reference Book, to find out
something about the life and work of John Keats.
(d) Exercises in Written English
1. Explain the meaning of each of the following ex-
pressions : close bosom-friend of the maturing sun. Summer
has o'er-brimik^d their clammy cells, drowsed with the fume of
poppies, barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day, among the
river sallows, thy hook spares the next swath and all its twined
flowers.
2. Divide the first six lines into feet, mark the accented
syllables, and say in what metre the poem is written.
8. Taking this poem as your model, so far as treatment
is concerned, give a prose word-picture of Summer, con*
188 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
sidering with tlie utmost care the (itiiess of each descriptive
adjective you use.
4. Take down from dictation and punctuate the last
stanza.
5. Expand the following metaphors into similes :
(a) I bridle in my struggling muse with pain.
(h) lie was a pillar of state,
(c) The enemy stormed the town.
(d) This remark served only to fan the flame of his
anger.
(«) The contagion was at length stamped out.
(/) Birds of a feather flock together.
(«?) Exekcises in Spoken Enousu
1. Use each of the following words or plirases in sentences
of your own making : the maturing Hun^ for the bees, the
Tjoinnoiving wind, furrow, choir, the songs of Spring, with
rosy hue, oozings, the redbreast whistles, stubble, conspiring,
gathering sivaltuws,
2. Say, with S4i!ue reasons, which of the four seasons
you like best.
3. Point out what acljective or adverb is wrongly used
in each of these sentences :
(rt) Quite a number of people 'wore at the Academy.
(6) He did su(;h an excellent paper that lie only lost
ten marks in all.
(c) Hardly had the speaker made his opening remarks
thap there was an interruption.
(d) There are less pages in this book than 1 thought.
(e) Tt would cause me no surprise if it did not rain.
4. Express in your own wwds the general meaning of
the second stanza.
5. (a) What is your idea of humour ? Give an example
of some story, incident, or anecdote that you consider
really funny.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 189
(b) Which of the following do you regard as fresh and
amusing, and which as merely hackneyed or ft'eble :
(i) Derbyshihe Magistha'pe : Can you keep your
longue still ? Woman : No, it is loose at one
end.
(ii) You'ng Man (to friend who is about to take his
photograph) : Mind my face don't break the
camera.
(hi) NorriNGiiAM W^oman : The leg is on the other
boot.
(iv) NoTTTNfiii AM Father ; 1 have ten children. The
oldest is live months and tlic young(‘st fifteen
years old.
(v) Wl»y does a chicken cross the road ? — To get to
the other side, of cc»ffi*se, you ass.
(vi) Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway, who, it
seems, lived up to her name, and had her
own way and gave Shakespe^are a hot time
of it.
(vii) Excuse me, sir, but you are occupewing my
pie.
(/) Exercises jn the Afpreciatton of liiTERATURE
1. Give a short account of the life and work of Keats.
2. Name six of his l)est-known poems, and say what you
know of any one of them.
3. Mention the names of half a dozxjn other writers y^ho
lived at about the same lime as Keats, and sp<*eify one
book that each wrote.
4. Keats’s Odes are remarkable for the perfect melody of
the verse, for the high imagination they display, and for
the beautiful and picturesque language in which they are
written. — Quote passages from the Ode to Autumn which
dearly illustrate each of these three outstanding char-
acteristics.
190 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
( g ) Exercise in Thinking
What effect do you think that broadcasting is likely to
have upon the education and general improvement of the
whole nation ? — Explain as fully as you can the view you
take, giving definite illustrations wherever possible.
LESSON TWENTY-FOUR
(a) Heading Exercise
A MAKER OF ENGLISH
We now come to the greatest name in our literature.
Unrivalled in so many other ways, Shakespere has no
equal with regard to the extent and profundity of his
influence on the English language. The greatness of
this influence docs not consist in the number of new
words which he added to the literary vocabulary,
though we have already had something to say of the
abundance and felicity of the compounds which he
invented, but in the multitude of phrases derived from
his writings which have entered into the texture of
the diction of literature and daily conversation. Wc
might call them “ household words,*’ without remem-
bering that it is from himself that we have learned this
expression. It would be possible to All whole pages
with the enumeration of the Shakesperian allusion.^
which are in every-day use. Caviare to the general,”
“ men in buckram,” “ coign of vantage,” “ a tower of
strength,” “ full of sound and fury,” “ a Daniel come
to judgment,” “ yeoman service,” “ the sere and yellow
leaf,” “ hoist with his own petard,” ” to cat the leek,”
“ curled darlings,” “ to the manner born,” “ moving
accidents,” “ a Triton among the minnows,” “ one’s
pound of flesh,” “ to wear one’s heart upon one’s
sleeve,” “ Sir Oracle,” “ to gild refined gold,” “ metal
more attractive ” — ^all these phrases, and very many
others from the same source, may now fairly be regarded
191
192 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
as idioms of the English language. If the reader
thinks that this is saying too much, let him ask himself
whether any man could be rightly acknowledged to be
thorouglily master of modern literary English who was
ignorant of the customary import and application of
these expressions.
One Shakesperian phrase, “ to out -Herod Herod,”
has not only become current in its original form, but
has become the model after which a large number of
other expressions have been framed. Among the
many examples that might be quot(*d from eminent
writers are ‘Mo out-Bcnlley Beni ley,” “to out-
Milton Milton,” “ to out-Darwin Darwin.” Shake-
spen* seems in truth to have had a curious fondness for
the invention of compound verbs with out-y expressing
the notion of surpassing or exceeding. All the words
of this kind that exist in modern English appear to
have been either framed by him, or by later writers in
imitation of his example.
It would be easy to give a somewhat long list of
words, such as control (as a noun), credent, dwindle,
homekeeping, illume, lonely, orb (in the sense of
“ globe ”), which were used by Shakespere, and have
not yet been found in any earlier writer. But such an
enumeration would probably give a greatly exagger-
ated impression of the extent of Shakespere’s contri-
butions to the vocabulary of English. The literature
of his age has not been examined with sufficient
minuteness to justify in any instance the assertion
that a new word was first brought into literary use by
him. Yet the fact that it is in his works that we so
often find the earliest known examples of words that are
now current is at any rate instructive, as showing the
keenness of his perception of the needs of the language.
BRADi.Ey Henry : The Making of English,
A PllOGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 198
( b ) Subjects for Class Study
I
The English Language : Some Makers of English.
We pointed out in Lesson Nineteen that English
has been greatly enriched by the numerous words it
has borrowed from other languages, such as Celtic;
Latin, Greek, and Scandinavian. But you will see
by the extract given from Dr. Henry Bradley’s MaMng
of English, that this is not the only way in which the
vocabulary of a language can be enlarged, but that
many w^ords and exprc'ssions have been invented by the
writers of great books.
Amongst the most notable of these, so far as English
is concerned, are the translators of the Bible (especially
the translators of the Authorisc‘d Version of 1611),
Shakespeare, Spenser, and Milton.
From the Bible we get peacemaker, tender mercy,
long-suffering, filthy lucre, Babel, the worship of Mammon,
a Naboth^s vineyard, the eleventh hour, a howling wilder-
ness, the shadow of death, to hope against hope, scapegoat,
fatted calf.
Our debt to Shakespeare has already been touched
upon in the extract.
To Spenser we oivc elfin, braggadocio, blatant, and
derring-do •, and to MilU n, darkness visible, that Ifad
eminence, the light fantastic toe, fresh woods and pastures
new, to hide one^s diminished head, gloom, pandemonium,
anarch, impassive, irresponsible.
In addition to this, Bunyan has given us Vanity Fair
and Slough of Despond ; Defoe, Man Friday ; Swift,
Lilliputian and Yahoo ; Sheridan, Malaprop ; Sir
Walter Scott, glamour, gruesome, free-lance, Norseman,
II. — 13
194 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
red-handed^ Caledonia stern and ivild, to beard the lion
in his den ; Carlyle, the dismal science (i.e. Political
Economy), self-help, sioansong, and a holt from the blue ;
Burke, colonial ; Coleridge, pessimism ; Macaulay,
constituency, and Huxley, agnostic \ while in our own
day we have superman, broadcasting, wireless, listening-
in, television, and the talkies, some of which have been
coined by the Press.
II
The Right Preposition.
You cannot have failed to notice that certain pre-
positions invariably follow certain words, and although,
apart from custom, there often seems to be no par-
ticular reason why one preposition should be used
rather than another, the use of the correct prc'position
is one of the principal tests of our ability to speak and
write good English. Let us therefore consider some
of these usages.
Different, as wc have already said, must be followed
by from, and not by to or than. On the other hand,
although, according to its derivation, averse should be
followed by from, it is nowadays nearly always followed
by to.
Between and among arc often misused, as in, “ The
money was divided between the five men.” Between,
however, should, as a rule, be used of two things, and
among of more than two.
Again, wc “ enter into ” an agreement to buy a
house, but when wc formally take possession of the
house wc “ enter upon ” the premises. When we
have taken possession we simply enter the premises.
The man who sells the house parts with ” the pro-
perty. perhaps because he is leaving the country to
embark upon ” a new enterprise. If he does leave
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 195
the country, then He parts frojn ” liis friends and
“ embarks in a ship.
“ Consist ** may be followed by either of or in.
“Consist o/” means “be composed of,” as, “The
dinner consisted of five courses.” “ Consist in ” intro-
duces a definition or a statement, as, “ Genius consists
in an infinite capacity for taking pains.”
If we arc “ unconscious o/” having done wrong, we
are “ insensible to ” the reproaches of our critics. We
may, however, “ correspond with ” tluim on the sub-
ject, and politely point out that their charges do not
“ correspond to ” the actual facts of the case. They
may “ agree with ” our views, but not to our proposal
that they should jaiblicly apologise.
We “ stand 5i/ ” a friend, but on our dignity, and we
are “ impatient with ” a person but of restraint. Wc
ada])t one thing from another thing, and if we do this,
it may become “ adapted to ” our requirements.
Lastly, note that the whole question “ centres in or
on ” so-and-so, and not round it.
(c) Exercisf.s in the Use or Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words : pro-
fundity, literary, vocabulary, abundance, felicity, texture,
diction, enumeration, idioms, import, current, surpassing,
exaggerated, minuteness, assertion, perception. — Use each
word in a sentence. •
2. Refer to a concordance to Shakespeare and ascertain
in which of Shakespeare’s plays the various sayings quoted
by Dr. Bradley arc to be found.
3. Find out from any source you can the names of some
notable modem writers, such as Dr. Henry Bradley, who
have written well-known works upon the history of the
English Language.
196 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
( d ) Exercises in Written English
1. Explain the meaning of each of the following, and
write a sentence to illustrate its use : caviare to the general,
coign of vantage, hoist with his mvn petard, a Triton among
the minnows, to gild refined gold, to out-Herod Herod.
2. What was tlie nature and extent of the influence that
Shakespeare had on the English language ? — Make use of
the facts given in the extract, if you wish ; but give ex-
amples that are n<jt to be found there.
3. Say what prepositions should follow these words :
conform, enter, confer, appropriate, correspond, agree, attend,
reconcile.
Most of the words given can be followed by more than one
preposition, the meaning of course being different in each
case. — Write sentences which make clear these differences
of meaning.
4. Write a little composition saying whether you prefer
silent-films or talking- films, and describe any talking-film
that you have recently seen.
5. Give a summary of this extract, using about 150
words.
(e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Complete in your own words the following incomplete
sentences :
(a) We now come to the greatest name
{b) The greatness of this influence does not
(c) It would be possible to fill
(d) Among the many examples that might be
quoted
(c) The literature of his age has
(/) Yet the fact that it is in his works
2. Give the correct pronunciation of the following words
and phrases : tite-d-tite, chaperon, dibris, tout ensemble.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 197
encore, billet-dousc, char-d-banc, au revoir, ballet, entree,
buffet, menu, hors d'veuvre,
8. Name some Makers of Knglisti, with examples of the
words they have made.
4. Class debate, on one of*thc following subjects :
(a) Are \vc too fond of sports and games ?
{b) Should capital punishment be abolished ?
(c) Should boys and girls bo educated together ?
5. Mention the names of one or two w'ell-known books on
the history of the; J-mglish language, say who wrote these
books, and describe the contents of any one of them.
6. Kxpress the following in simpler Knglish :
(а) I do not know a pleasure more affecting than to
range at w'ill over the deserted apailments of
some line old family mansion. The traces of
extinct grandeur admit of a better passion than
envy ; and contemplations on the great and
good, whom we fancy in succession to have been
its inhabitants, weave for us illusions, incom-
patible with the bustle of modem occupancy,
and vanities of present aristocracy.
(б) Brave Sea-captain, Norse Sea-king Columbus, my
hero, royalest Sea-king of all ! it is no friendly
environment this of thine, in the waste of deep
waters : round thee mutinous discouraged souls,
behind thee disgrace and ruin, before thee the
unpenetrated veil of Night.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
The following are the opening words of some well-known
short stories. Say w'hich of these openings you prefer, and
why :
(a) On the northern coast of Cornwall, between
Tintagel and Bossiiiey, down on the very
198 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
margin of the sea, there lived not long since an
old man who got his living by saving sea-weed
from the waves, and selling it for manure.
Antuony TrolIiOpk : Malachi^s Cove,
(h) I was sick — sick unto death with that long agony ;
and when they at length unbound me, and I was
permitted to sit, I felt that rny senses were
leaving me. The sentence — the dread sentence
of dcatli — was the last of distinct accentuation
wliich reached my cars.
Edgar Allan Poe :
The PH and the Pendulum.
{c) Strictly speaking, there were only six Poor
Travellers ; but, being a Traveller myself,
though an idle one, and being withal as poor as
I hope to be, I brought the number up to seven.
C'liARLES Dickens : Seven Poor Travellers.
(d) “ Yes,” said the dealer, “ our windfalls are of
various kinds. Si>me customers are ignorant,
and then 1 touch a dividend on my superior
knowledge, Sc^me are dishonest,” and here he
held up the candle, so that the light fell strongly
on his visitor, “ and in that case,” he continued,
I profit by my virtue.”
Robert Louis Stevenson : Markheim.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
The market price of a commodity is determined by
Demand and Supply. By Demand is meant the quantity
of a commodity which buyers arc prepared to purchase at a
certain price, and by Supply, the amount of any commodity
which is ofl'ered for sale at a price.
Here is a table wliich shows the interaction of tlic forces
of supply and demand in regard to the fixing of the Market
Price of butter :
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
199
Supply in lbs.
Price.
Demand in
100
-/Gd.
am
180
-/lOd.
800
220
1/-
770
340
l/6d.
720
410
1/ad.
630
500
*/-
500
550
2/Gd.
430
580
3/-
250
700
4/-
140
lbs
Explain as clearly as you can the meaning of this table,
and state the various conclusions you can draw from the
particulars given.
LESSON TWENTY-FIVE
(a) Reading P2xeficistc
OZYMANDIAS OF EGYPT
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said : Two vast and trunklcss legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shatter’d visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamp’d on these lifeless things,
The hand that mock’d them and the heart that fed ;
And on the pedestal these words appear :
“ My name is Ozymandias, king of kings :
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair ! ”
Nothing beside remains. Round the d(‘eay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
Pkkcy Bysshe Shelley.
(b) Sun.TECTS FOR Class Study
1
Metre and Verse (ii).
Rime, we have explained, is the repetition of the
same sound at the end of lines of verse ; as in :
To my true king 1 offer’d free from stain
Courage and faith ; vain faith, and courage vain,
200
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 201
We say “ at the end of lines of verse ” because that is
where the rimes are usually to be found. But occasion-
ally rimes occur in the middle of a line.
Riming-words do not always rime very exactly, but
the more exact they are the better. Perfect rimes
must conform to the following conditions :
1. The vowel sounds must be identical. Stone
and lo7ie, for example, are perfect, but not
stone and frown,
2. The consonant sounds preceding the vowel
sounds must differ. Thus, way and day arc
permissible, but not way and away
3. The consonant sounds following the vowel
sounds must agrees Paced and faced, for
instance, agree in this respect, but not paced
and gazed,
4. The riming sylLablcs must both be stressed.
AvSr and deiSr, for exam})le, have these
syllaV^lcs stressed, but not aver and enter,
II
Verse Composition.
Now that you know something of metre and verse-
making there is no reason why you should not try to
write little verses of your own. This will give you a
keen appreciation of rhythm and balance in both prose
and verse. Moreover, verse-making is not nearly *so
difficult as it seems.
The best way to begin is by writing a couplet ; that
is, two lines that rime together ; and the most manage-
able metre to choose is either the four-fopt iambic, Le,
the iambic tetrameter, or the five-foot iambic, i,e, the
iambic pentameter. Here are some examples of these
couplets :
202 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Four-Foot-
How cairn, how beautiful, comes on
The stilly hour, when storms are gone.
Such was the golden hour, that broke
Upon the world, when Hinda woke
Five -foot.
True case in writing comes from art, not chance,
As those move easiest who have Icarn’d to dtoce.
Words are like leaves, and where they most abound,
Much fruit of sense beneath is rarely found.
When you have succeeded in writing the couplet
with some ease, go on to the four-lined stanza used by
Thomas Gray in his famous Elegy :
Far from tire madding crowd’s ignoble strife.
Their sober wishes never learn ’d to stray ;
Along the cool, sequester’d vale of life
They kept the noiseless tenor of their way.
In choosing your rime words take care to choose
words for which there are plenty of rimes — words
ending with the vowel sounds heard in ylay, tie^ go, for
example : otherwise you will be creating needless
difficulties for yourself. Do not make your lines too
regular : use some trochees in place of iambuses,
particularly in the first foot, if you want to keep your
lines from hoconiing monotonous. Further, do not
build up your verses Avord by word. This process
may b(^ necessary at first, but you will find that it will
make your work seem stiff, clumsy, and wooden. Try
to think in lines rather than words.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 203
(c) Exercises jn the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words :
antique^ shattered^ visa^e^ sneer, sculptor, survive, mocked,
pedestal, colossal, boundless,
2. Find out something about ancient Kgypt. Refer to
the Children's Encyclopcedia, Nelson's Encyclopatdia, or
Ancient Egypt (Berm’s Sixpenny Library).
3. Collect some information about the life and work of
Shelley, and about the period in which he lived.
(d) Exercises in Written English
1. (a) Give a word similar in meaning to each of the
words mentioned in Question 1, Section (c).
(b) Write sentences which show the difference in meaning
between the words in each of the following groups :
(i) Prevent, deter, restrain.
(ii) Excessive, superfluous, unnecessary, irrelevant.
(iii) Injurious, harmful, destructive, ruinous.
2. Explain the general meaning and then the particular
point or moral of Ozymatidias.
3. Write in three paragmphs containing about twenty
sentences in all, a picturesque and descriptive account of
ancient Egypt. See that each paragraph has a definite
theme which all the sentences in that paragraph help to
illustrate, and that the three paragraphs are adequately
linked up.
4. Point out what mistakes there are in the followinfg,
and make any corrections you may find necessary ;
(a) I was getting over my nervousness ; for she was
so nice, and moreover 1 was thrilled with being
put in a house.
{b) A very young cliild would always say that his or
her aunts and uncles were the best people in the
world next to the mother and father, for when-
ever they visit them chocolates and such like
204 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
always find their places in their handbags and
pockets.
(c) The fanner and his wife are jolly agreeable old
couple and provide teas the ingredients of
which arc produced on the farm at a very
reasonable price.
(d) Each girl’s character could easily be deducted
from her fiice.
5. Divide the first eight lines of this poem into feet,
mark the stressed syllables, and say in what metre the
poem is written. l*ut into groups all tlie words (at the
end of the lines) wliich rime, and state which of these rimes
are imperfect.
(e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use in sentences of your own the following expressions :
near them on the sand, wrinkled lip, these lifeless things,
on the pedestal, look on my works, that colossal wreck, stretch
far away.
2. Describe Ozymandias, king of kings, as he appeared
in all his glory.
Give the correct prommeiation of these words :
sphinx, Jsis, Osiris, pyramids, dromedary, Sahara, Tutank-
hamen, Cleopatra, Alexandria, Cairo, Nile, oasis, Allah.
4. Fill in the blanlo$ in the following verses, with special
regard to the metre and the rimes :
To her works did Nature link
The human soul that through me.
And much it grieved my to
Wiat man has of man.
Through primrose tufts, in that bower,
The periwinkle trailed its wTeaths ;
And ’tis my that every
Enjoys the it
5. Use the following words metaphorically : sea, flower,
steel, sweet, storm, flame, light, darkness.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 205
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Give a short critical appreciation of Ozymandias.
2. Write a brief account of the life and death of Shelley.
* 3. Name six of Slielley's best-known poems, and say
what you know of any one of them.
4. Compare Slicllov’s Ozymandias with Keats’s Ode to
Autumn, from the point of view of the style in which they
are written.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
Write about ten lines of verse on The Sphinx, The Pyra-
mids, The Nile, or any other subject you like to elioosc.
When you have done so, scAii the lines, and say in what
metre you have written the verses.
LESSON TWENTY-SIX
{ a ) Heading Exercise
ADVICE TO A*SCHOOLBOY
September 12/7/, 1822.
My dear little Fellow,
You arc now going to settle at school, and may
consider this as your first entrance into the world. As
my health is so indifferent, and I may not be with you
long, I wish to leave you some advice (the best I can)
for your conduct in life, both that it may be of use to
you, and as sometliing to remember me by. I may at
least be able to caution you against my own errors, if
nothing else.
As we went along to your new place of destination,
you often repeated that you durst say that they were a
set of stupid, disagreeable people, meaning the people
at the school. You were to blame in this. It is a
{ good old rule to hope for the best. Always, my dear,
believe things to be right till you find them the con-
jtrary ; and even then, instead of irritating yourself
1 against them,^ endeavour to put up with them as well
as you can, if you cannot alter them. You said you
were sure you should not like the school where you
were going. This was wrong. What you meant was
that you did not like to leave home. But you could
not tell whether you should like the school or not, till
you had given it a trial. Otherwise, your saying
that you should not like it was determining that you
*o6
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 207
would not like it. Never anticipate evils ; or, because
you cannot have things exactly as you wish, make
them out worse than they are, through mere spite
and wilfulness.
You seemed at first to take no notice of your school-
fellows, or rather to set yourself against them, because
they were strangers to you. They knew as little of
you as you did of them ; so that this w^ould have been
a reason for their keeping aloof from you as well, which
you would have felt as a hardship. Learn never to
conceive a prejudice against others because you know
nothing of them. It is bad reasoning, and makes
enemies of half the world. Do not think ill of them,
till they behave ill to you ; and then strive to avoid
the faults which you see in them. This will disarm
their hostility sooner than pique or resentment or
complaint,
I thought you were disposed to criticize the dress
of some of the bo3’^s as not so good as your own. Never
despise any one for anything that he cannot help —
least of all, for his poverty. I would wish you to keep
up a})pearances yourself as a defence against the idle
sneers of the world, but I would not have you value
yourself upon them. I hope you will neither be the
dupe nor victim of vulgar prejudices. Instead of
saying above, “ Never despise any one for anything
that he cannot help,” I might have said, “ Never
despise any one at all ” ; for contempt implies a triurrfph
ove^ and pleasure in the ill of another. It means that
you are glad and congratulate yourself on their failings
E >r misfortunes. The sense of inferiority in others,
rithout this indirect appeal to our self-love, is a painful
eeling, and not an exalting one.
You complain since, that the boys laugh at you and
do not care about you, and that you are not treated as
208 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
you were at home. My dear, that is one chief reascm
\ for you being sent to school, to inure you betimes to
the unavoidable rubs iind uncertain reception you
may meet with in life. You cannot always be with
me, and perhaps it is as well that you cannot. But
you must not expect others to show the same concern
about you as I should. You have hitherto been a
spoiled child, and have been used to have your own
way a good deal, both in the house and among your
playfellows, with whom you were too fond of being a
leader ; but you have good nature and good sense,
and will get the better of this in time. You have now
got among other boys who are your equals, or bigger
and stronger than yourself, and who have some thing
ebe to attend to besides humouring your whims
and faiicics, arid you feel this as a repulse or
piece of injustice. But the first lesson to learn
is that there arCwOthcr ^ people „in the world, besidcs-
yourself.
There are a number of boys in the school where you
are, whose amusements and pursuits (whatever they
may be) arc and ought to be of as much consequence
to them as yours can be to you, and to which, therefore,
you must give way in your turn. The more airs of
childish self-importance you give yourself, you will
only expose yourself to be the more thwarted and
I laughed at. True equality is the only true morality
or true wisdqm. Remember always that you are but
. one among others, and you can hardly mistake your
I place in society. In your father’s house you might
‘do as you pleased : in the world you will find com-
petitors at every turn. You are not born a king’s
son, to destroy or dictate to millions ; you can only
expect to share their fate, or settle your differences
amicably with them. You already find it so at school.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 209
and I wish you to be reconciled to your situation as
soon and with as little pain as you can.
lam, dear little fellow.
Your affectionate father,
William Hazlitt.
(b) Subjects for Class Study
1
Letter-Writing.
You have no doubt alr(‘ady written a good many
letters to one person or another, and this you should
now find a help ; but, at the same time, experience
shows that the letters of young people to relatives and
familiar friends ari‘ apt to be hastily written and care-
lessly expressed. Thoughts are tumbled out in riotous
profusion, and but little regard is paid to order and
coherence. By all means be natural — ^in fact, in
letter-writing, that is the very thing you should be —
but do not let ease and naturalness degenerate into
slipshod English and vulgar slang. Hence, when you
have written a letter, go over it ag ain, and while taking
care not to spoil its unforced naturalness, try to im-
prove its phrasing and its gtaieral tone.
It is important that a letter should be in its proper
form, and you should therefore note that a private
letter is made up of the following parts :
The Heading.
This consists of the address and the date. The
address is, of course, that of the person sending the
letter, and should be put at the right-hand lop comer
of the sheet. The date should be written just under-
neath the address, and should be in the form — 1st
January y 1930, and not IjllSO, or 1-1-30,
II. — 14
210 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
The Salutation.
The salutation will vary according to the circum-
stances. If you are waiting to a friend or a relative,
put Dear Tom, Dear May, Dear Uncle Dick, etc. ; if
to an acquaintance or a stranger, put Dear Mr. Blank,
etc. The salutation is placed on the left-hand side of
the sliect, and a little low’cr than the date.
The Body.
The body comprises the main part of the letter, and
begins a little below the salutation. It should be
divided into suitable paragraphs, carefully punctu-
ated, and expressed in clear, simple English. There
is no need, however, to enlarge upon what is required
in the body of the letter, as something has already
been said about this in the opening paragraph of the
lesson.
The Close and Signature.
The close will vary in the same manner as the
salutation : to relatives it will usually be, Your
affectionate son, brother, etc. ; to friends. Yours sincerely
or Yours very sincerely', and to acquaintances and
strangers, Yours faith fully or Yours truly. As regards
the signature, when you arc writing to relatives and to
intimate friends use your Christian name only, but
when writing to acquaintances and strangers, both your
Christian and surname.
II
The Difference between an Adverb, a Conjunction,
and a Preposition.
The Adverb, the Conjunction, and the Preposition
have so much in common that it is not always easy to
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 211
distinguish between them, and when the same word
can be used as any of these parts of speech the difficulty
becomes still greater.
How, then, are you to tell one from the other ? The
answer is : By considering the exact work that the
word is doing in the sentence.
An Adverb, you will remember, qualifies or limits any
part of speech except a noun, pronoun, or interjection.
A Conjunction joins clauses ; an adverb (except a
conjunctive adverb) does not.
A Preposition governs a noun or its equivalent ; an
adverb or a conjunction does not.
Take, for example, the word before, as used in the
following sentences :
(a) They bowed down before him.
(b) I have told you about this before.
(c) The enemy launched their attack before our
reinforcements arrived.
In (a), before governs the pronoun him, as is shown
by the fact that this pronoun is in the accusative case.
It must therefore be a preposition.
In (6), it limits the verb have told. It must therefore
be an adverb.
In (c), it joins the clauses, “ The enemy launched
their attack,” and “ our reinforcements arrived.” It
must therefore be a conjunction.
(c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words : in-
different, destination, durst, contrary, irritating, endeavour,
determining, anticipate, wilfulness, aloof, conceive, prejudice,
hostility, pique, resentment, criticize, despise, vulgar, implies,
inure, betimes, reception, humouring, whims, rubs, thwarted ,
society, competitors, amicably, reconciled.
212 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
2. Collect some information about Hazlitt and his work,
and the times in wiiich he lived.
3. Give the derivation of these words : contrary, antici-
pate, prejudice, vulgar, humouring, society, amicably, recon-
ciled.
{d) Exercises in Written English
1. Summarise the first three paragraphs of the letter,
using about fifty words.
2. Take down from dictation and punctuate the last
paragraph.
3. 'Write ttie son's reply to this letter,
4. l*oint out what you ctmsidcr to be errors or blemishes
in the English of each of the following — that is, errors in the
grammar, arrangement of words, and correct use of words :
(«) You often repeated that you durst say that they
were a set of stupid, disagreeable people.
(6) You said you were sure you should not like the
scliool where you were going.
(c) This will disarm their hostility sooner than pique or
resentment or complaint.
(d) The more airs of childish self-importance you give
yourself, j'ou will only expose yourself to be the
more thwarted and laughed at.
(e) You can only expect to share their fate.
(/) 1 hope you will neither be the dupe nor victim
of vulgar prejudices.
(g) That is one chief reason for you being sent to school.
5. Do you think that this is the kind of letter that a
father would ^iiOAvadays be likely to write to liis son at
school ? — If you think that it is not, explain in what ways
it would differ.
{e) Exercises in Spoken Engush
1. Use in sentences of your own each of the following
words and expressions ; your conduct in life, if nothing else.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 218
it is a good rule^ as wHl as you cauy eorarihj as you wish,
a spoiled child, keep up appearance, destination, irrilating,
wilfulness, criticize, inure, thwarted, amicably, society.
2. Wliat impressions do yo\i form of the character of
Hazlitt, so far as you can gather from wliat is revealed in
this letter.
3. Give the correct pronunciation of the following words :
Southsea, Swansea, Gloucester, Harwich, Lowestoft, Ciren-
cester, Bicester, Ramsgate, Congersbury, Chenics, Haventry,
W orccstcr.
4>. What is your opinion of the advice given in this
letter ? — If the letter had been written to you, is it ad\ice
that you w'ould have welcomed and followed ?
5. Draw a little word-portrait of llazlitt's son, basing
it entirely upon what you arc told about him in the letter.
Do you think that the type of boy you describe is likely to
l>e popular at school V Give some reasons.
0. Say, w’ith your reasons, which of the words here
shown in italics are (a) Adverbs, (b) Conjunctions,
(c) Prepositions :
(i) The game was now over.
(ii) Tlie bird flew 07’cr the house.
(hi) There was but one left.
(iv) All but Tom were successful.
(v) I called to see you yesterday, but you were out.
( f ) Exercises in the Apfreciation of LitekatiAie
1. Do you think that this letter is written in a style
suitable to a little boy ? — ^Point out any parts that you
consider arc unsuitable, giving your reasons.
2. Was llazlitt a novelist, a dramatist, a pod, a critic,
an essayist, or an historian ? Say how these differ from
one another; and if Hazlitt’s writings come under more
than one of these headings, state which.
214 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(^) Exeiicisk in Thinking
The following letter is full of errors. Point out as many
Df them as you can find.
To Messrs Smith,
Manor Place,
Harrow-, Sussex.
Dear Sir,
With ref, to your favour of the 20th proximo, which
we have duly received ; we would point out that I did not
order the style of goods you sent us, which are in conformity
with what we ordered. Moreover your invoice is quiet
wrong, for you show that 60 of these artieals at l/6d. come
to £4. 5. 9, whereas this should be £;{. 10. 0. Please be
more careful in fewture, and send us the right goods by
return of post.
With kindest regards,
Ever Yours Respectfully,
Mu Jackson.
LESSON TWENTY-SEVEN
( a ) Reading Exercise
MRS. MALAPROP
Mrs. Malapro'p, Your being Sir Anthony’s son
captain, would itself be a sufficient accommodation ;
but from the ingenuity of your appearance, I am con-
vinced you deserve the character here given of you.
Absolute. Permit me to say, madam, that as 1 never
yet have had the pleasure of seeing Miss Languish, my
principal inducement in this affair at presint is the
honour of being allied to Mrs. Malaj^rop ; of whose
intellectual accomplishments, elegant maniKirs, and
unaffected learning, no tongue is silent.
Mrs. Malaprop. Sir, you do me infinite honour I I
beg, captain, you’ll be seated. (They sit.) Ah ! few
gentlemen nowadays know how to value the ineffectual
qualities in a woman ! — ^few think how a little know-
ledge becomes a gentlewoman. — Men have no sense
now but for the worthless flower of beauty !
Absolute. It is but too true, indeed, ma’am ; — yet I
fear our ladies should share the blame — they think
our admiration of beauty so great, that knowledge in
them would be superfluous. Thus, likt^ garden-trees,
they seldom show fruit, till time has roblx cl them of
more spacious blossom. — ^Few, like Mrs. Malaprop and
the orange-tree, are rich in both at once.
Mrs. Malaprop. Sir, you overpower me with good-
breeding, — He is the very pine-apple of politeness I—
216 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
You are not iprnorant, captain, that this giddy girl has
somehow contrived to fix her affections on a beggarly,
strolling, eavesdropping ensign, whom none of us have
seen, and nobody knows anything of.
Absolute. Oh, I have heard the silly affair before. —
I’m not at all prejudiced against her on that account.
Mrs. Mnlaprop. You arc very good and very con-
siderate, captain. I am sure I have done everything
in my power since I exploded the affair ; long ago I
laid my positive conjunctions on her, never to think
on the fellow again ; — I have since laid Sir Anthony’s
preposition before her ; but, I am sorry to say, she
seems resolved to decline every particle that I enjoin
her.
Absolute. It must be very distressing indeed, ma’am,
Mrs. Mala prop. Oh ! it gives me the hydrostatics
to such a degree. — I thought she had persisted from
corresponding with him ; but, behold, this very day, I
have interceded another letter from the fellow.
Richard Brinsley Sheridan : The Rivals.
(b) Subjects for Class Study
I
Conversation and Dialogue.
If you listen with close attention to the conversation
of any of your friends and acquaintances, you will very
soon come to the conclusion that spoken English differs
a good deal from written English, and further con-
sideration will show you that the chief respects in
which it differs from written English arc these :
1. It is, as a rule, more easy, light, and flexible.
2. The language is simpler.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 217
3. The sentences arc shorter.
4. Words are abbreviated : 7’m, don't, well, etc.
5. Colloquialisms are introduced : cheerio, hye-
bye, swank, etc.
6. Sentences are abruptly broken in the middle,
and left incomplete.
Written dialogue, if it is to appear natural and con-
vincing, must be a close imitation of this, retaining the
lightness and ease of conversation, but modifying its
more obvious crudities and defects. There is, indeed,
a danger from two sides — ^thc danger of the dialogue’s
being too crude or too polished. If it is too crude
it becomes loose, wordy, and rambling, and if it
is too polished it becomes stiff, formal, bookish, and
unreal.
Remember, too, that the dialogue must be in keeping
with the character depicted. A sweep must be made to
talk like a sweep, and not like an Oxford under-
graduate, and a Yorkshireman like a Yorkshirernan,
and not like a Londoner.
There are two ways of setting out dialogue. In plays,
the names of the characters are put first, and quotation
marks are omitted ; but in novels, the names of the
speakers arc put last, and quotation marks are used to
indicate the actual dialogue. Here, however, a word
of warning must be given. When you write con-
versation in the second form take care to avoid the
monotonous repetition of he said, she said, he said, etc.
Vary this formula by using other exj)ressions, such as
he remarked, he observed, he replied, he laughed, according
to the context. Or, alternatively, when it is quite clear
who the speaker is, simply omit the explanation.
218 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
II
More Common Errors.
You have probably heard of the “ split infinitive,”
although you may not understand exactly what it is.
Let us therefore tell you something about it. To split
an infinitive is to put an adverb between to and the
rest of the verb ; as, “ She used to regularly go to
church.” Here the adverb regularly is put between
to and go, and thus splits the infinitive to go. Most
grammarians regard this as an error, and there can be
no doubt that it is usually the sign of a careless and
slovenly style. You will therefore do well, at all
events for the time being, to avoid it. And this, as
a rule, presents no difficulty. The sentence given, for
example, could be rewritten either as, “ She used to go
regularly to church,” or “ She used to go to church
regularly.”
Take care not to use the word less when you mean
fewer. Less is used of quantity, and fewer of number.
Thus, we can say, “ We took less money than we
expected,” because there wc are referring to quantity ;
but not, ” There are now less men than women voters,”
because there wc are referring to number. Less should
therefore be fewer.
What are we to say about such expressions as, ” It
is me,” and “ It is him ” ? The verb ” to be,” you
will recollect, takes the same case after it as it does
before it, and therefore, according to this rule, we
should say, ‘‘ It is /,” and “ It is /te.” But the ex-
pression, “ It is is now used by so many educated
people that it has come to be regarded as correct.
It is himf* however, is not on this footing, and we
must therefore change him to he.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 219
Sometimes a difficulty arises in connection with the
genitive or possessive case. Are we, for instance, to
say, St, James^ Park or St, Jameses Park ; for conscience*
sake ov for conscience's sake ? The general rule is that
if the final s of the noun in the genitive case is sounded,
it should be included in the spelling of the word ;
hence we should write, St. Jameses Park. But that
where there would be a succession of three 5 sounds if
the full form w'crc used, the genitive is formed by
adding an apostrophe only ; hence we should say
^or conscience* sake.
(c) Exercises tn the Use of Reference Rooks
1. Find in your dictionary the meanings of the following
words ; accommodation^ ingenuity, principal^ inducement,
allied, intellectual, accomplishments, elegant, unaffected,
infinite, ineffectual, superfluous, spacious, contrived, eaves-
dropping, ensign, prejudiced, considerate, exploded, con-
junctions, preposition, particle, hydrostatics, persisted,
interceded,
2. Collect some information about Sheridan and bis work
as a playwright, including a summary of the plot of The
Rivals,
3. Give the derivation of any six of the words mentioned
in Question 1.
(d) Exercises in Written English
1. Write sentences in which the following words are
used correctly : accommodation, ingenuity, ineffectual,
conjunctions, preposition, particle, hydrostatics, persisted
interceded.
2. Point out any words that are wrongly used in these
sentences, and say what the right words should be :
220 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(a) From the ingenuity of your appearance, I am con-
vinced you dcvserve the character here given of you.
(b) All ! few gentlemen nowadays know how to value
the inerfcctual qualities in a woman.
(c) Long ago I laid my positive conjunctions on her,
never to think on the fellow again I have
since laid Sir Anthony’s preposition before her ;
but, I am sorry to say, she seems resolved to
decline every particle that I enjoin her.
(d) Oh ! it gives me the hydrostatics to such a degree.
— I thought she liad persisted from corre-
sponding with him ; but, behold, this very day,
I have interceded another letter from the fellow.
3. Write a dialogue lx*tween a cook and a housemaid, or
between two charwomen, or between a mistress and her
maid, in which various malaprops are introduc(‘d. — These
malaprops should preferably be words that j^oii yourself
have heard misused.
4. Tlie sentences in the following paragraph are not in
their right order. Rearrange them correctly :
So the canal was constructed and the mines con-
nected and drained at the same time. It is sixteen
miles long, and underground from end to end.
Ordinary canal boats arc used, but the power is
furnished by men. The most remarkable canal in the
world is the one between Worslcy and St. Helens, in
the north of England. On the roof of the tunnel arch
arc cross pieces, and the men who do the work of
propulsion lie on their backs on the coal and push with
their feel against the cixjss bars on tlie roof. In
Lancashire the coal mines are very extensive, half the
country being undermined, and many years ago the
Duke of Bridgewater’s managers thouglit they could
save money by transporting the coal underground
instead of on the surface.
5. Say what you know about the plot of The Rivals,
making use of the information you were told to collect in
(c) 2
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 221
(e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Break up Captain Absolute’s first speech (from
“ Permit me to say,” down to, “ no tongue is silent ”) into
a series of simple sentences, and then recombine these
simple sentences into one complex sentence.
2. Point out what is wrong in each of the following :
(a) The climate of Bombay is such that its inhabitants
have to live elsewhere.
(b) Robert loiiis Stephenson first invented railways.
(r) A metaphor is a suppressed smile,
{(f) Shakespeare ran away to Loiiflon and worked
outside a picture palace.
(e) Poetry is when every line starts with a caterpillar.
(/) The Deserted Traveller is the most important of
Goldsmith’s works.
3. Give the correct pronunciation of tlie following words :
tautology 9 pnuncca, poignant^ query, angle, angel, homicide,
aqueduct, benejicent, agile, diphtlurng, diphtheria,
(If you do not know the meaning of any of
these words, consult your dictionary.)
4. Sketch the character of Mrs. Malaprop or Captain
Absolute.
5. Explain the special work that each word does in this
sentence :
They think our admiration of Ixiauty so great, that
knowledge in them would be superfluous.
6. Say what is meant by “the split infinitive.” Give
examples.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Give a short account of the life and work of Sheridan.
2. Mention the names of six other well-known play-
wrights, and specify at least one play written by each.
3. Give your opinion of this extract as a piece of effective,
natural, and convincing dialogue.
222 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
4. So far as you can judge from the extract, do you think
that these characters — Mrs. Malaprop and Captain Absolute
— ^are drawn true to life ?
( g ) Exkrcise in Thinking
Say exactly what you would do in tlie following cir-
cumstanc(‘.s :
1. You wake up in the night and find that the house is
on lire.
2. You knock at a street door to oblige a small boy
who tells you that he can’t reach the knocker,
and before the door can be opened he runs
gleefully away.
3. You are working late at the olllce on a Saturday,
and find that you have iKJcn accidentally locked
in a back room on the top lloor. There is no
night-watchman, and every one else has left the
building.
LESSON TWENTY-EIGHT
(«) Reading Exercise
THE GREAT FIRE OF LONDON
1666, September 2nd (Lord’s day). Some of our
maids sitting up late last night to get things ready
against our feast to-day, Jane called us up about three
in the morning, to tell us of a great fire they saw in the
City. So I rose, and slipped on my night-gown, and
went to her window ; and thought it to be on the
back side of Mark-lane at the farthest, but being
unused to such fires as followed, I thought it far enough
off ; and so went to bed again and to sleep. About
seven rose again to dress myself, and th(*n looked out
at the window^ and saw the fire not so much as it was,
and further off. By and by Jane comes and tells me
that she hears that above 300 houses have been burned
down to-night by tJic fire we saw, and that it is now
burning down all Fish-street, bj'- London Bridge. So
I made myself ready presently, and walked to the
Tower, and then got up upon one of the high placjes.
Sir J. Robinson’s little son going up with me ; and
there I did sec the houses at that end of the bridge all
on fire, and an infinite great fire on this and the other
side the end of the bridge. So down with my heart
full of trouble, to the Lieutenant of the Tower, who
tells me that it begun this morning in the King’s
baker’s house in Pudding-lane, and that it hath
burned down St. Magnus’ Church and most part of
223
224 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Fish Street already. So I down to the water-side,
and there got a boat, and through bridge, and there
saw a lamentable fire. Everybody endeavouring to
remove their goods, and flinging into the river, or
bringing them into the lighters that lay off ; poor
people staying in their houses as long as till the very
fire touched them, and then running into boats or
clambering from one pair of stairs by the water-side to
another. And among other things, the poor pigeons,
I perceive, were loth to leave their houses, but hovered
about windows and balconies, till they burned their
wings and fell down. Having si aid, and in an hour’s
time seen the fire rage every way, and nobody, to my
sight, endeavouring to quench it, but to remove their
goods, and leave all to the fire, and having seen it as
far as the Slcele-yard, and the wind mighty high, and
driving it into the City : and everything after so long a
drought proving combustible, even the very stones of
the churches, and among other things the poor steeple
(St. Laurence Poulteney), whereof my old school-
fellow Elborough is parson, taken fire on the very top,
and there burned until it fell down ; I to White Hall.
Samuel Pepys : Diary.
(6) Subjects for Class Study
I
The Diary. ,
A Diary is, strictly speaking, a daily record of
events, and as nearly all these events either directly
or indirectly concern ourselves, we are very rarely at a
loss for something interesting to write about.
Moreover, in keeping a diary we can enjoy a greater
degree of freedom than in any other kind of composi-
tion ; for since the entries are presumably intended to
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 225
be seen by ourselves alone, we can indulge in the most
intimate observations and reflections on everything
and everybody around us, and a diary can thus form
a very valuable record of our mental and moral
development.
Before beginning your diary, study some of the well-
known diaries of the present and the past — the diaries
of Samuel Pepys, for instance, and John Evelyn, and
Fanny Burney, and Captain Scott. From these you
will see that the interest of a diary docs not depend
upon the importance of the events recorded, as in these
diaries some of the most trivial incidents make the most
interesting reading.
Write simply and naturally, just as you wnuld in
wTiting a Icller or some dialogue, and remember that
although the (iutries may be in a condensed and
abbreviated form, that is no reason why the English
should be elipp(*d, slovenly, or telegraphic. Write as
carefully as you would in any other kind of composition.
II
Figures of Speech (ii).
The figures of speech given in Lesson Sixteen were
all based on comparison or resemblance. The following
are some figures of speech based on contrast :
Antithesis. — Antithesis is the figure in which *one
word or idea is set against another with the object
of heightening the effect of what is said ; as, “ Look
like the innocent flower, but he the serpent under
it.”
Epigram. — An Epigram is a short, witty saying,
sometimes involving an apparent contradiction ; as,
“ Cowards die many times before their death.”
II.— 15
226 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Pun. — A Pun is a play upon words ; that is, the use
of a word in such a way that it is capable of bearing
two or more different meanings, the object being to
create humour, admiration, or surprise ; as,
Ben Battle was a soldier bold.
And used to war's alarms,
But a cannon-ball shot off his legs.
So he laid down his arms.
Hyperbole. — Hyperbole is a greatly exaggerated
statement, not intended to be taken literally, but used
mainly for effect ; as, “ If 1 have told you that once,
I must have told you a thousand times.”
Irony. — Irony consists in saying, under the guise of
a compliment, the opposite of what is meant, but with
an accompanying indication, cither in tone or manner,
that the words arc not intended to be taken literally ;
as, “ He admired all the statues in London, and that,
at all events, showed good taste.”
Euphemism. — Tliis is a figure in which we speak of
harsh and unpleasant things in a mild and pleasant
manner ; as, “ He that’s coming must he provided
for.” (This is Lady Macbeth’s way of saying
“ murdered.”)
(c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1 . Find in your dictionary the meanings of these words :
lamentable^ clambering, perceive, mighty, combustible, drought,
steeple, whereof, parson.
2. Collect some information al)out Samuel Pepys, and
try to ascertain his importance in English Literature.
3. Turn to a map of lyjndon and point out all the places
mentioned in the extract.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 227
{ d ) Exercises in Wuitten English
1. Name one word similar in meaning and one word
opposite in meaning to each of the following : mighty^
comhustihle^ further, morning, lamentable, everything, lop,
staying.
Use any two of these groups of w'ords (that is, the
original word, the w'ord similar in meaning, and the
word opposite in meaning) in sentences of your own
making.
2. Describe in Diary form, and as vividly as j’ou can, an}'
fire that you yourself have seen.
3. Turn into modem English the first four sentences
(down to the words, “ by London Bridge ”).
4. Give ten examples of how the English used by Pepys
differs from modern English. Select your examples from
the latter part of the extract (that is, exclude the first
four sentences), and give in each case the modern English
equivalent.
5. Summarise this extract, using about one hundred
words in all.
(e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Turn into Reported Speech the passage beginning,
“ By and by Jane comes,” and ending, “ Fish S^treet
already.”
2. Reproduce in your own words Pepys’s account of the
Great Fire of I^ondon.
3. Give the correct pronunciation of these names of
English authors : Boswell, Pepys, Evelyn, Banyan, De
Quincey, Kyd, Vaughan, Chatterton, Holinshed, Malory,
Walpole, Bentham, Beaumont, Massinger, Burke, Uazlitt^
Froude.
228 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
4. Say what is \sTong in each of the follovdng :
(a) Mussolini is a new kind of stuff.
(b) The imperfect tense is used in French to express a
future action in past time which does not take
place at all.
(c) Algebraical symbols are used when you do not
know’ what you are talking about.
(d) The sun never sets on the British Empire because
the British Empire is in the East and the sun
sets in the West.
(e) Walter Scott was imprisoned in the Tower because
he could not pay his delits. While there he
wrote tlic Waverley novels, but he was after-
wards burnt alive. lie also brought tobacco
from Virginia, so called after his beloved mistress
Queen Elizabeth.
5. Name the various figures of speech to be found in the
following sentences ;
(а) Prosperity doth best discover vice, but adversity
doth best discover virtue.
(б) Why is a bee like a rook ? — Bee caws.
(c) The child is father of the man.
(d) Was this tlie face that launched a thousand ships
And burnt the topless towers of Ilium ?
(c) He is full of information, like yesterday’s Times,
(/) This tyrant, whose sole name blisters our tongue.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Give a short account of Pepys’s Diary, mentioning the
period that it covers, the main topics with which it deals,
and the style in which it is written.
2. Give your opinion of this extract as an example of
the way in which a Diary should be kept.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 229
( g ) Exercise in Thinking
What famous living Englishman would you most like to
meet ? £
Make your selection after careful thought, and fully
explain why you have made that selection.
LESSON TWENTY-NINE
( a ) Reading Exercise
PEACE REJOICINGS
Strawberry Hill,
Mat/ 3, 17 19.
We have at last celebrated the Peace, and that as
much in extremes as wc generally do everything,
whether we have reason to be glad or sorry, pleased or
angry. Last Tuesday it was proclaimed : the King
did not go to St. Paul’s, but at night the whole town
was illuminated. The next day was what was called
“ a jubilee-masquerade in the Venetian manner ” at
Ranclagh : it had nothing Venetian in it, but was by
far the bc’st understood and prettiest spectacle I ever
saw : nothing in a fairy tale ever surpassed it. One
of the proprietors, who is a German, and belongs to the
Court, had got my Lady Yarmouth to persuade the
King to order it. It began at three o’clock, and, about
five, people of fashion began to go. When you entered,
you found the whole garden filled with masks and
spread with tents, which remained all night very
commodely. In one quarter w^as a May-pole dressed
with garlands, and people dancing round it to a tabor
and pipe and rustic music, all masqued, as were all the
various bands of music that were disposed in different
parts of the garden ; some like huntsmen with French
horns, some like peasants, and a troop of harlequins
330
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 281
and scaramouches in the little open temple on the
mount.
On the canal was a sort of gondola, adorned with
flags and streamers, and filled witli music, rowing
about. All round the outside of the amphitheatre
were shops, filled with Dresden china, japan, etc., and
all the shopkeepers in mask. The amphitheatre was
illuminated ; and in the middle was a circular bower,
composed of all kinds of firs in tubs, from twenty to
thirty feet high : under them orange trees, witli small
lamps in each orange, and bcloAV them all sorts of the
finest auriculas in pots ; and festoons in natural flowers
hanging from tree to tree. Between the arches too
were firs, and smaller ones in the balconies above.
There were booths for tea and wine, gaming-tables and
dancing, and about two thousand persons. In short it
pleased me more than anything I ever saw.
Horack Walpouk :
from a Letter to Sir Horace Mann.
(h) Subjects for Class Study
I
The English Language : Word -Making.
In Lesson Twenty-Four we told you a little about
one or two great Makers of English. In tliis lesson we
shall very briefly explain the actual processes by which
words are created.
Word-making takes place in three different ways :
1. By adding one word to another to form a com-
pound word ; as, joze/cpocket, redbreast, ^//e-wolf,
drawback, owday, grej^-green, wpset, meantime.
2. By adding a prefix or a suffix {i.e. a syllable,
but not a complete word) to an old word to form a new
282 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
one ; as, mwdeed, antecedent, contradict, benevolenty
monarch, ^i/mpathy, tripod, butcher, iather^ fishmonger^
artist, spinster, shepherdess, heroine.
8. By creating an entirely new word ; as, &oom,
crcLsh^ bang, pop, hiss, whiz, rumble, titter, whirr, hum , —
Many of the words created in this way are onomatopoeic
words ; that is, words such as those given above, which
imitate the sounds they describe. Other words, not of
this kind, have been invented by various writers, as
mentioned in Lesson Twenty-Four.
11
About Interjections.
Interjections are sounds which express emotion,
but which rarely enter into the grammatical structure
of a sentence ; as, “ Pooh ! don’t talk nonsense.”
“ AIcls ! my poor brother.” They vary greatly in
type from age to age, ranging from tlic Zounds ! of
Queen Elizabeth to Mr. George Robey’s Swish f
Some of them arc corruptions of actual words or
expressions, such as, hail ! (“ be healthy ”), marry !
(“ by the Virgin Mary ”), and good-bye ! (“ God be
with you ”). But the majority of them arc mere
sounds, such as. Oh ! Ah ! Pooh ! Bah ! Ho !
(c) Exebctsks in the Use of Reference Books
1. Look up the meanings of the following words, as used
in the extract given : celebrated, extremes, proclaimed,
illuminated, jubilee, masquerade, spectacle, surpassed,
garlands, tabor, rustic, disposed, harlequins, scaramouches,
gondola, streamers, amphitheatre, bower, auriculas, festoons,
booths, gaming.
2. Collect some information about Horace Walpole and
his work.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 288
8. Give the derivations of these words : jubilee, masquer-
ade, gondola, amphitheatre, surpassed, harlequin, rustic,
( d ) Exercises in Written English
1. Explain the following allusions :
(a) We have at last celcbmted the Pence.
(h) The King did not go to St. PauVs.
(c) The next day was what was called “ a jubilee-
masquerade in the Venetian maimer ” at
Ranelagh.
(d) On the canal was a sort of gondola.
(c) All around the outside of the amphitheatre were
shops, filled with Dresden china.
2. Give ail animated and picturesque account of the old
May Day celebrations, or of the present-day celebrations,
if you happen to live in a district where the custom is
still kept up.
3. Summarise this extract, using about C)ne hundred
words in all.
4. Write a letter to a friend describing any Fancy Dress
Ball to wliich you have been. Use the extract as a model.
5. Take down from dictation and punctuate the last
paragraph of the letter.
{e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use in sentences of your own the following words and
phrases : celebrated the Peace, the whole toion, people of
fashion, remained all night, hands of music, in dijferent
parts of the garden, filled xcith Dresden china, hanging from
tree to tree, about two thousand persons, more than anything I
ever saxv, proclaimed, jubilee, masquerade, festoons.
2. Express in your own words and at full length the
contents of this letter of Walpole's.
8. Give five examples of the way in which Walpole’s
English differs from modem English.
284 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
4. Give the correct pronunciation of the following words :
wrought, shriek, cruise, choir, aisle, sieve, yearn, weird,
scourge, yacht, postpone, fasten, ostler, often, hustle, nestling.
5. Explain, with examples, the various ways in wliich
words can be created.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Give a short account of the life of Horace Walpole,
sketch his character, and briefly describe the Letters for
which he is famous in English Literature.
2. Mention the names of three fir ftiur other well-known
letter-writers, and state the age in which they lived.
3. To what extent does this letter of Horace Walpole’s
agree with your idea as to what a private letter should be ?
Quote from it whenever possible.
4. Describe as clearly as you can the style in which the
letter is written, and compare it in this respect with Hazlitt’s
letter given in Lesson Twenty-Six.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
Suppose that you were walking along a deserted country
road and suddenly saw a bad motor-car accident ; explain
(a) Exactly’^ what you would do.
(b) The way in which you would do it.
(c) The order in whicli you would do it.
Further, if you arc a Boy Sexjut or a Girl Guide, explain
in what way your training would be likely to help you in
such an emergency.
LESSON THIRTY
( a ) Reading Exf.rcise
ON ms BLINDNESS
When I consider how my light is spent.
Ere half my days, in this dark world and wade,
And that one Talent which is death to hide,
Lodged with me useless, though my Soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest He returning chide, —
Doth God exact day-labour, light denied ?
I fondly ask : — But Patience, to prevent /
That murmur, soon replies ; God doth not need
Either man’s work, or His own gifts : who best
Bear His mild yoke, they serve Him best : His
state
Is kingly ; thousands at His bidding speed
And post o’er land and ocean without rest : —
They also serve who only stand and wait.
John Milton.
( b ) Subjects for Class Study
Revision.
This lesson will be devoted to revision of the work
done in Lessons Twenty-One to Twenty-Nine.
The Verb Infinite.
The Verb Infinite consists of those parts of the
verb which are not limited by a subject ; that is, the
»35
236 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
Infinitive Mood, the Participles, and the Gerund.
The Infiiiiiivc Mood is a noun-phrase, the Participles
are verb-adjectives, and the Gerund is a verb-noun.
Take care not to confuse the Present Participle and
the Gerund.
Twofold Use of Adjectives.
Adjectives can be used in two ways : as Predicative
Adjectives and as Epithet Adjectives. Wiien an
adjective forms part of the predicate it is called a
Predicative Adjective. When it does not form part
of the predicate, but stands next to the adjective it
limits, it is called an Epithet Adjective.
Agreement of Adjectives.
Adjectives are sometimes said to agree with the
nouns they limit. But in modern English the only
adjectives that are inflected arc this and that, which
have the corresponding plural forms these and those.
Hence take care not to write these sort or those sort
instead of this sort or that so7't.
Position of Adverb
Generally speaking, the adverb should be placed as
near as possible to the word it qualifies. It is usually
put before an adjective, a preposition, or another
adverb ; after an intransitive verb, or the direct object
of a transitive verb ; between an auxiliary and its
participle in the compound tenses of the verb. The
position of the word only requires the greatest care.
The Right Preposition.
Certain words must be followed by certain pre-
positions. Some of these are : different from, averse to.
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 237
unconscious of^ insensible to^ consist in or of. centre on
or in, enter into or upon, embark on or in, part with or
from, agree with or to, stand hy or on, impatient with
or of, adapted /rom or to, correspond with or to.
The Difference between an Adverb, a Conjunction,
and a Preposition.
It is sometimes diilicult to decide whether a word
is an adverb, a conjunction, or a preposition, especially
when the same word can be used as any of these parts
of speech. Remember tliat an adverb limits any part
of speech except a noun, pronoun, or interjection ;
that a conjunction joins clauses, and that an adverb
does not ; and that a preposition governs a noun or its
equivalent, and that an adverb or a conjunction does
not.
More Common Errors.
Avoid “the split infinitive”; take care not to use
the word less (which is used of quantity) when you
mean fezver (which is used of number). As a general
rule, the verb “To be ” takes the same case after as
before it, and this is usually the nominative case. But
while “ It is him ” and “ That’s them ” arc wrong,
“ It’s me ” has become more or less accepted as good
English. In connection with the genitive case, the
rule is that if the final s of the noun in the genitive
case is sounded, it should be included in the spelling of
the word, but that where there would be a succession
of three s sounds if the full form were used, the genitive
is formed by adding an apostrophe only.
Summarising.
When summarising a long passage, glance through
the whole passage to find out the subject with which it
288 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
deals, put down what you consider to be a suitable
title, go carefully over the passage again, note down
the theme or topic sentence of each paragraph, and
write your summary from this outline. The summary
should usually be in Reported Speech ; that is, in the
past tense and in the third person.
Direct and Reported Speech.
The difference between Direct and Reported Speech
is that in Direct Speech we quote the exact words
used by a speaker, while in Reported Speech we
quote his words with slight modifications to show that
we are indirectly reporting them. The chief rules for
turning Direct into Reported Speech arc : Change all
pronouns of the first and second person to the third ;
change all verbs in the present tense into verbs in the
past tense ; and change all words of nearness into
words of remoteness.
Metre and Verse.
A combination of vstressed and unstressed syllables
is called a foot, a succession of a definite number of
feet is called a line, and a group of lines forming a
complete division of a poem is called a stanza. — ^There
are four main kinds of feet in English verse : iambus,
trochee, anapaest, and dactyl. A line consisting of
three feet is called a trimeter, of four feet a tetra-
meter, of five feet a pentameter, and of six feet an
hexameter. Three of the most popular English
metres arc the iambic tetrameter, the iambic penta-
meter, and the anapaestic tetrameter.
Rime.
Rime is the repetition of the same sound at the end
of lines of verse. Perfect rimes must conform to the
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 230
following conditions : the vowel sounds must be
identical ; the consonant sounds preceding the vowel
sounds must differ ; the consonant sounds following
the vowel sounds must agree ; the riming syllables
must both be stressed.
Verse Composition.
After you have gained some knowledge of the
structure of verse, you should try to write little verses
of your own. First of all try the couplet and the
four-foot iambic metre. Then go on to the four-lined
stanza used in Gray’s Elegy, In choosing your rime-
words, take care to choose words for which there arc
plenty of rimes ; and do not make your lines too
regular ; that is, introduce some trochees.
Letter -Writing.
A private letter is made up of the following parts :
the heading, the salutation, the body of the letter, the
close, and the signature. — Experience shows that the
letters of most young people are hastily written and
carelessly expressed. By all means be natural — that,
indeed, is the chief virtue of a letter — but do not let
ease and naturalness degenerate into slipshod English
and vulgar slang.
Dialogue.
Spoken English differs a good deal from written
English. It is, as a rule, more easy, light, and flexible ;
the language is simpler, the sentences are shorter,
words are abbreviated, colloquialisms arc sometimes
introduced, and sentences are often left incomplete.
Written dialogue, if it is to appear natural, must be a
close imitation of this, retaining the lightness and ease
240 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
of conversation, but modifying its more obvious
crudities and defects.
The Diary.
In keeping a Diary wc can enjoy a greater degree of
freedom than in any other kind of composition. Before
beginning your diary study some of the well-known
diaries of the past and the present. Write simply .and
naturally, and remember that though the entries may
be in a condensed and abbreviated form, that is no
reason why the English should be clipped, slovenly, or
telegraphic.
Figures of Speech.
The figures of speech givtm in Lesson Sixteen were
all based on comparison. The following figures are
based on contrast : antithesis, epigram, pun, hyper-
bole, irony, euphemism.
The English Language : Word -Making.
The English vocabulary has been greatly enriched
by the words it has borrowed from foreign tongues.
But many of our most valuable and expressive words
are creations of the English language itself. Word-
making takes place in three different ways : (1) By
adding one word to another to form a compound
word. (2) By adding a prefix or suffix to an old word
to form a new one. (3) By creating an entirely new
word.
The English Language : Word -Makers.
We have no notion who originated most of our
words, but some of them were invented by well-known
writers. Amongst the most notable of these word-
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 241
makers arc Shakespeare, Spenser, Milton, and the
translators of the Bible.
(c) Exercises in the Use of Reference Books
1. Find in your dictionary the meanings of the following
words : talent, thereivith, chide, exact, fondly, yoke, post,
state.
2. Collect some information about Milton and his literary
work.
(d) Exercises in WRi*rrEN English
1. Turn the wliole of this poem into Reported Speech,
beginning with the words, “ Milton said that . .
2. State the rime scheme of this poem, say if it is called by
a special name, and scan the first six lines.
3. Give in diary form some of the entries which you think
Milton might have made when he realised that he was
slowly becoming blind.
4. Write a letter to a friend telling him that you have
just been reading some of Milton^s poetry, and giving him
some account of what you have read.
5. Compose a dialogue between yourself and a friend on,
“ Ought Examinations to be Abolished ? ”
(e) Exercises in Spoken English
1. Use the following words and phrases in scntencies of
your own making ; xvhen • I consider, in this dark world,
my true account, soon replies, they also serve, chide, exact,
yoke, state.
2. Construct sentences which show :
(a) The difference between the epithet and the pre-
dicative use of adjectives.
(b) Tlie correct construction with each, every, either .
or, neither . . . nor.
II. — 16
242 A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE
(c) The word but used as a preposition, an adverb,
and a conjunction.
(d) The words dothCi wash, tide, and pluck, used
metaphorically.
8. Give the correct pronunciation of these words, all
of which occur in the preceding lessons : gaol, skein
chaperon, menu, encore, sphinx, Cairo, oasis, Swansea,
Cirencester, Harwich, Chenies, panacea, beneficent, aisle.
4. Break up the following sentence into a series of simple
sentences, and then combine tiicse simple sentences into a
complex sentence : ** Mrs. Chick and Miss Tox, who had
brought them down on the previous night, had just driven
away from the door, on their journey home again ; and
Mrs. Pipchin, with her back to the fire, stood, reviewing the
new-comers, like an old soldier.”
5. Explain clearly what is meant by Irony, Epigram,
Antithesis, and Euphemism, giving an example of each.
(/) Exercises in the Appreciation of Literature
1. Give a very brief sketch of the life of Milton.
2. Name six of the most important of Milton’s poems,
and give a short account of any one of them.
3. Give a critical appreciation of Milton’s On his
/ Blindness.”
4. Which do you regard as the finest phrase and as the
finest line in the poem ?
5. One of the lines in this sonnet of Milton’s has become
almost proverbial. Say which you think it is.
(g) Exercise in Thinking
“ The intricacies of the English language,” says a writer,
arc well illustrated in the definition given of a sleeper.”
A sleeper is one who sleeps. A sleeper is that in
which the sleeper sleeps. A sleeper is that on which
the sleeper runs while the sleeper sleeps. Therefore
A PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH COURSE 243
while the sleeper sleeps in the sleeper, the sleeper carries
the sleeper over the sleeper under the sleeper until the
sleeper which carries the sleeper jumps the sleeper and
wakes the sleeiier in the sleeper by striking the sleei^er
on the sleeper, and there is no longer any sleeper
sleeping in the sleeper on the sleeper.
Show that you have clearly gTasi.)ed tlie meaning of this
f>assage, and then give further examples of 6ne word being
used in several different senses ; that is, of what is called
generalisation '' in language.
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